Cyburbia Weightfest Thread

[zman]

I began hitting the gym for real this time. Not just going on a Monday and tuesday and then makking up excuses for the rest fo the week, I mean going 5-7 days in a row.
Now, despite donuts at my staff meeting this morning, I am eating better to help with the exercise.

So far, after 2 weeks for hard work, I am down 2 pounds . Good for me, as I am not into fad dieting and want to lose weight at a controlled pace. As soon as I build my road bike, there will be more fun to be had as well as hikes and stuff this summer.

Good for you, Nerudite.

[Salmissra]

So those that wanted to lose weight this year... how's it going?

I started South Beach on January 5, and so far I'm down 25 lbs. I'm loving the diet, and I feel so good (lots of energy). Dropped two sizes so far too, which is getting difficult because none of my clothes fit quite right.

Just wanted to check in to see how everybody is fairing and to cheer you all on.

I just don't have the self-discipline for any regimented diet plan. I just go with what worked while getting ready for my wedding:
1) less fried food - check
2) more exercise - no check
3) less sugar and carbs - check the sugar, but not the carbs

I'm trying to get to the carbs and exercise portion of my "diet", but keep getting distracted by my urges. But I'm going to keep at it - I've lost 5 of the 15 pounds I put on since moving back to Dallas. That's just a start - I want to be where I was when I got married.

[SkeLeton]

Well... my nickname still isn't ironic; though is on the road to become so.
Let's see, I'm 1.8 m tall (I think thats around 5'11'-6') and I weight 58 kg... (128 lbs) So I'm still slim... I should weight around 65 kg (132 lbs) for my height.
I'm guessing though genetics (it's happened like this in my family all along) that I won't become overweight until I'm around my 30's.... so 10 years to go...until I'm fat and bald like every elder in my family...

Hmm, I must have been really estimating that weight back then... I bet it was closer to 54 kg.. Because I really doubt that I could get fatter by losing 2 kg....

Yeah, I'm quite slim... and nothing has changed... it's probably because I can lose weight easily (I know some of you may envy me) but I really can't seem to gain it back up, so in the long run, I weight the same.

[Zoning Goddess]

I've lost 6 lbs in 4 weeks on South Beach. Shoulda been more but I always cheat when RJ is here. Six or so to go and I'll be very happy.

[Budgie]

My assistant informed me that her and Queen B might be hitting the workout place together.

[cololi]

My goal for this year was not to necessarily to lose weight, but to get in better shape, but the two have come hand in hand. I've dropped 12 pounds since October by making sure that I do extensive cardio workouts at least 3 days a week. 2 of those days have been backcountry skiing, which involves at least 1.5 hours of hiking (typically travelling about 2 miles with a vertical gain of 1500-3000 feet). The other day is typically playing 2 hours of basketball or spending about 30 minutes on the elliptical at the gym. I have not altered my diet, but I generally do not drink a lot of soda, or eat chips or fast food.

[Maister]

My assistant informed me that her and Queen B might be hitting the workout place together.

If they do, I suggest planting C-4 charges at strategic structural points. Don't bother with r.p.g's or l.a.w.'s - they may punch a hole in a wall, but usually the resultant damage is easily repairable.

[Yorke790]

So those that wanted to lose weight this year... how's it going?

I started South Beach on January 5, and so far I'm down 25 lbs. I'm loving the diet, and I feel so good (lots of energy). Dropped two sizes so far too, which is getting difficult because none of my clothes fit quite right.

Just wanted to check in to see how everybody is fairing and to cheer you all on.

My goal at the start of the year was to drop about 30 lbs. off my 6'3'', 250 lb. frame. My sister is getting married next year, and I'd like to look good, but so far, it has been a stressful year, and I've started pack more lbs. on...i'm up to 260, which isn't good! I feel sluggish and slow, and seem to require 10 hours of sleep a night.

Hopefully the summer will help my cause, as once I get golfing my usual 3 times a week, i should be able to shed a few, and feel more energetic as a result...

As someone else mentioned, with Lent coming up, giving up Pop, Chips, Fast Food, and Alcohol should definitely help!

[Tide]

I've never been 'thin' or even 'athletically fit'. I've always held my own and been decent at sports, not out of breath and can move for a big guy. I'm 6'0" (really 5' 11 3/4"). I am currently as of two days ago approximately210 pounds. I started South Beach about January 12th or so around there. I never got a base line weight but I'll say it was easily in the 225-235 range. My pants were starting to not fit great and I was a lazy azz. The South Beach Diet has been great, I sleep well and never have a lack of energy (except for the first 2 weeks). My goal is 200 on the diet and another 10 via exercise (come spring time, because I hate gyms). The last time I can remember being less than 190 is when I had mono about 8 years ago as a Sophomore in college. Overall the weight loss is only second to what the real crux behind the South Beach Diet is meant for, but my pants are fitting actually loose, need new jeans and belts soon. It's been really helpful to have my GF doing this diet at the same time though, we can eat out together and keep motivating each other and when we cook for each other it's keeping within the diet.

[Maister]

I was once a lean 'n mean fighting Marine and weighed in around 168 lbs. (6' tall) of solid muscle. Since then, I have gained maybe only 15 lbs. but things have, um, redistributed a little since getting out.
To be honest, I really don't worry about it much and my weight seems to fluctuate +/- 10 lbs depending on the amount of stress/mental state I'm under a given month.

Okay, the 'fluctuating' since I turned 40 seems to be moving primarily in the higher number direction.

plus now being over 40 does you in - wow

Take heed, t'is true! It was once enough for me just to stress a little more at the job, not have that third beer, and maybe go for walks a little more often - that doesn't seem to cut it after 40.

[Richmond Jake]

....I always cheat when RJ is here....

Sure, blame me. Did I hold you down and force the bagel into your mouth?

[Jaxspra]

Going to the gym 6 nights/mornings/lunch/whenever I have an hour a week...not eating carbs, have lost about 20 pounds in the past 2 months....25 more to go and I will finally be happy...I do think the 3 miles a day and the weights I am lifting are keeping the scaled from going down but helping me drop sizes...down 2 sizes

[dandy_warhol]

i promised myself to loose 10 lbs by my 30th b-day in august. i've been playing soccer 3 times a week and have cut out chocolate (except in the form of powerbars) until we hear whether or not my BF gets the job he applied for.

being poor and in grad school makes it difficult to eat right and exercise regularly. i was planning on hitting the gym 3x a week this semester but since our fitness facility was commandeered by the Army Reservists and pretty much destroyed the facility and won't open for quite some time.

[BKM]

Haven't stepped on the scales, but I notice my clothes are looser this week. I did four marathon walks two weekends ago, and last weekend (just past) I bicycled 33 miles and took my dogs for a walk in San Francisco (we got caught in the rain- from 72 degrees and stunningly beautiful to 51 degrees and pouring in one day.)

[Zoning Goddess]

Well, I'm in trouble with the doc. My cholesterol is way up. He said you can stay on S Beach, but NO red meat, cheese, full-fat anything, etc. Actually, I'm pretty good, eat a lot of salads, cottage cheese, chicken, veggies, etc. so I don't know how much I can cut except maybe the eggs in the morning and a few sproradically eaten full-fat products.

[JNA]

Diet is a 4-Letter Word.

Between med & nutritional change I have lowered my cholesterol to under 150.

[The Irish One]

I have a sweets problem and a cheese problem. Besides that my diet is very healthy.

[jread]

I could stand to lose about 10-15 pounds. I'd just need to adjust my diet a little and it wouldn't be too hard. I stay pretty active training in Muay Thai (kickboxing) and have put on a lot of muscle mass over the last year or two. It's really interesting how the more muscle you have, the easier it is to keep the weight off. Muscle burns a ton of calories, even when you're asleep, while fat burns hardly anything at all.

[Jaxspra]

I could stand to lose about 10-15 pounds. I'd just need to adjust my diet a little and it wouldn't be too hard. I stay pretty active training in Muay Thai (kickboxing) and have put on a lot of muscle mass over the last year or two. It's really interesting how the more muscle you have, the easier it is to keep the weight off. Muscle burns a ton of calories, even when you're asleep, while fat burns hardly anything at all.

You know I keep hoping thats true but the stupid scale will NOT go down!!! Its only been 6 weeks of weight lifting at the gym so perhaps I still have not built up enough muscles...

[nerudite]

Going to the gym 6 nights/mornings/lunch/whenever I have an hour a week...not eating carbs, have lost about 20 pounds in the past 2 months....25 more to go and I will finally be happy...I do think the 3 miles a day and the weights I am lifting are keeping the scaled from going down but helping me drop sizes...down 2 sizes

Good job!!! I knew you were still at it, and I"m so glad to see that it's working for you! Keep up the good work

Well, I'm in trouble with the doc. My cholesterol is way up. He said you can stay on S Beach, but NO red meat, cheese, full-fat anything, etc. Actually, I'm pretty good, eat a lot of salads, cottage cheese, chicken, veggies, etc. so I don't know how much I can cut except maybe the eggs in the morning and a few sproradically eaten full-fat products.

Wow... that's surprising. SB is supposed to lower your cholesterol overall. Good thing I get mine checked at my annual in May. I don't eat many eggs anymore. Maybe 3 or 4 a week, but usually I mix them in with eggbeaters. If I'm eating something like omelets or scrambled eggs, I can't tell the difference between all eggs and eggs mixed with eggbeaters. Hope your cholesterol improves!

[Dan]

I'm 5' 10". Right now, I waver between 175 and 180 pounds. I got down to 163 last March, close to my ideal of 160. Then, alpoecia aerota hit, and my hair started to fall out to the point where I looked like I was on chemo. Among other things like hydrocortisone shots and gels, treatment includes oral steroids, and we all know what that does to someone's weight.

Most of my hair is back, but I'm still taking Prednisone, which makes it very hard to lose weight. I work out about four times a week, and eat 1,500 calories a day or less, but I just can't get down under 175. Working out has done a lot for general stanima; I can run on a treadmill forever, and get off usually because I get bored. I'm getting the aerobic benefits, but very little weight loss.

Is it humanly possible to lose weight while you're taking oral steroids?

[jread]

You know I keep hoping thats true but the stupid scale will NOT go down!!! Its only been 6 weeks of weight lifting at the gym so perhaps I still have not built up enough muscles...

Honestly, the scale probably won't go down if you're building muscle. You will be increasing your weight as muscle is much more dense than fat. A much better measure of your progress would be to check your bodyfat percentage every few weeks. For instance, I weigh more now than I did back when I did no exercise at all, yet my bodyfat is much lower.

Lots of people (especially women) become so focused on the number on the scale. Instead, put your focus on how you feel, how you look and how your clothes fit. Weight is just a number.

[urbanchik]

I've lost about 10 pounds since my last post. YEAH! My goal is to lose at least 7 more by the end of March. My motivation? I joined a weight bet at work. And while I am not leading (the girls on Weight Watchers are kicking everyones ass!), I am holding my own and at least not gaining.

I am sticking to a 1500 calorie/day diet. Plus I try to minimize the amount of processed foods that eat unless it is low in salt, sugar, and other bad stuff. The processed foods that I do eat (Kashi cereal, organic yogurt, rice cakes) are high in fiber, so its all good.

My goal was to exercise regularly, but I havent achieved that goal.

I had success in the past with South Beach diet, but the first 2 weeks were so tough on my body. I tend to have high LDL cholestrol too, so I'm sure that didnt help.

Good luck to all. Spring is right around the corner.....

[Jaxspra]

Honestly, the scale probably won't go down if you're building muscle. You will be increasing your weight as muscle is much more dense than fat. A much better measure of your progress would be to check your bodyfat percentage every few weeks. For instance, I weigh more now than I did back when I did no exercise at all, yet my bodyfat is much lower.

Lots of people (especially women) become so focused on the number on the scale. Instead, put your focus on how you feel, how you look and how your clothes fit. Weight is just a number.

I know its just a number but it was my number one motivator to even start dieting...
My clothes fit much better (well, not really, they are too big ) and I know I am down a size, I just still want some of the weight/mass to come off and don't know if it will. I am going to see about getting a personal trainer at the gym for a few sessions and maybe they can help me work on what I need to lose some actual weight. I do 35-45 minutes of cardio 6 days a week and lift weights (not free weights, I use the machines) 4-5 days a week...been at it for 5 weeks...heading there right now as a matter of fact

[zman]

I seriously began a regiment of eating well and working out at the beginning of February. Here is the progress, and I was surprised last night at my new results.

Feb. 16-- 240 lbs.
Feb. 25-- 238 lbs.
Mar. 2 -- 236 lbs.

Needless to say, I was surprised at a remark about my appearance from a coworker yesterday, and was equally surised at my progress since last Saturday! This morning even, my jeans were a little loose and I had to change them as the ass end of the jeans were sagging so much that I felt like those women that wear low cut jeans that show their underwear...
Alas, I am still overweight for my age and height, but I am working on it!