Training & Nutrition - Maximizing Weight Loss

I am in a "Biggest Loser" style contest at work that started Jan 4th. We have our final weigh in April 4th, which is five weeks away. I needed to change my eating habits and loss weight and this competition has given me a jump start. I am down 16.8 pounds on the official work scale. I have gotten this far by eating a low fat diet, lowering my daily calorie intake (2000 to 2500 per day), and doing cardio 3 to 5 days a week. I want to make sure I peak at the end of March for the weigh in? How can I max out my weight loss potential in a healthy way over this next month?

My Stats; 6'3'' 238.2 lbs at the start. I track my cals on fitday (http://fitday.com/WebFit/PublicJournals.html?Owner=aham23)

Thanks in advance. Later.

Start lifting weights. Not high weight/low rep style of weightlifting, but something that you can feel after 10 reps. Do 2-3 sets per exercise....I would suggest consulting with a personal trainer to get a routine down, and perhaps join a gym if you can swing it.

Muscle burns fat. The more muscle you have, the more fat you'll burn. Unless you're predisposed to getting "huge" from exercising (muscle size is largely genetic), I wouldn't worry about packing on an extra 20 pounds of muscle.

If you're one of those lucky people who gains muscle fast, lifting might be counterproductive to your goal of losing the most weight. That is, you could gain a couple pounds of muscle in the 5 weeks you have left. But you'll probably want to start lifting weights after the contest, since it's great for fitness and also for long term weight loss.

Maybe do more cardio if you have time. But think about doing some other form of exercise so you don't get an overuse injury. Like if you're cycling now, add in some walking twice a week, for example.

This could burn an extra 500 calories a week--not a lot really, compared to the diet.

Depends.

Do you want to lose max weight fast in order to win something
or
Do you want to lose weight fast and cotrolled in a way you can sustain for a lifetime.

If just for the win, wouldnt an atkins type diet / dehydration diet lose the most weight in a 1 month period?

Then after you win, switch back to your sustainable one :)

I will stay away from any radical weight loss attempts. This low fat diet is working for me and I will staying away from the Atkins approach. I do want to win though!!

I am in the midwest and the weather isnt the best for riding at this time. However, it may hit 50 degreess tomorrow so I hope to skip out of work early and hit the road.

I totally think picking up the cardio, time permitting, is a must. Along with changing up the cardio and hopefully riding more I think that is all I can do. Later.

Start lifting weights. Not high weight/low rep style of weightlifting, but something that you can feel after 10 reps. Do 2-3 sets per exercise....I would suggest consulting with a personal trainer to get a routine down, and perhaps join a gym if you can swing it.

Muscle burns fat. The more muscle you have, the more fat you'll burn. Unless you're predisposed to getting "huge" from exercising (muscle size is largely genetic), I wouldn't worry about packing on an extra 20 pounds of muscle.

Wrong. That would be if the person wanted to get into better HEALTH. They simply want to lose weight, and for that, weightlifting's the wrong route.

I am in the midwest and the weather isnt the best for riding at this time. However, it may hit 50 degreess tomorrow so I hope to skip out of work early and hit the road.

I totally think picking up the cardio, time permitting, is a must. Along with changing up the cardio and hopefully riding more I think that is all I can do. Later.

Hrm, any chance you can commute to work ?
Great way to get in an hour or 2 of cardio without giving up any time, since your just trading in car time for bike time :)

Try not drinking 24 oz of vodka and 40 oz of wine in a single day.

Try not drinking 24 oz of vodka and 40 oz of wine in a single day.

yes that is the answer i was looking for. no not really. but it is true. had a wedding in st louis this past weekend that involved the above and a trip to the waffle house. my wife seems to think that i estimated my consumption a bit on the high side? must be a guy thing?? i really have had only two "binge" days is eight weeks, the super bowl and this wedding. commutting to work isnt really an option for me. the weather and chicago traffic make for too many hazards. i guess there is no secret or trick to this. i just need to stick to the diet, no more fun days, and pick up the cardio. like i said i hope to ride tomorrow. thanks for the tips. later.

Don't get me wrong - I have nothing at all against binge drinking (for those who do not have a problem handling it). It just doesn't go with weight loss.

Wrong. That would be if the person wanted to get into better HEALTH. They simply want to lose weight, and for that, weightlifting's the wrong route.

+1. Most I ever weighed was the healthiest I've been in my life, when I was lifting every day.


If you want to win, ask some wrestlers about losing weight before weigh-in. Hint: dehydration is key. Obviously it doesn't help you the next day, but if you win, what else matters, right :p

Seriously, it sounds like you're on the right track, maybe kick the exercising up to 5x a week for the next month to burn those extra pounds, but slow and steady is the way to go, and this will make for a much healthier you for years after this contest is over.

Stay away from the Waffle House.

I wouldn't say weight lifting is the wrong approach at all. I would argue that the contest should focus more on losing body fat as apposed to overall weight. One could lose a lot of muscle mass along with body fat by not following a proper exercise routine, ie diuretics+cardio-resistance training & proper diet=poor health.

I would shift the competition to body fat and purchase a set of calipers and/or a dual reading body mass/weight scale. As stated earlier, muscle burns fat AND you'll be much healthier in the long run. Crash diets almost always fail and result in increased fat gains once you begin eating your normal diet again.

Best of luck to you and focus more on your overall health.

My 2 cents.

Looking at your diet today, for lack of a better word, it is TOTAL s&$t. I'd be ashamed to even post what you are eating today.
WAAAY too much sugar, carbs are to high on the GI scale, not enough complex carbs. Not enough fat, not enough protein.
You are just eating trash.

Try to learn to drink your coffee without sugar, those 7-10 spoonfulls of sugar a day are killer

I would shift the competition to body fat


I'd shift the meaning of Criterium to "who can arrive carrying the most pretzels in his jersey pockets", but that's not the contest, is it?

And losing muscle mass isn't always a bad thing. Sometimes, you don't need the muscle. When I started cycling instead of weightlifting, I lost 30 pounds, almost all of it from my upper body. I would hardly say I'm in poor health. As long as you aren't going anorexic and losing muscle mass from, say, your heart, you're not in danger.

Looking at your diet today, for lack of a better word, it is TOTAL s&$t. I'd be ashamed to even post what you are eating today.
WAAAY too much sugar, carbs are to high on the GI scale, not enough complex carbs. Not enough fat, not enough protein.
You are just eating trash.

Well arent you just a special little piece of s&$t! Ashamed to post what I eat? I never claimed to be eating the right things in the first place so piss off. My eating habits are way better now then they were before Jan 06. If you want to help then help. I am all for changing what I am doing, that is why I asked. Otherwise go crap on someone else's thread.

Anyway, my sugar intake is down and I hope to be drinking sugarless coffee in about two weeks. So cut the sugar, more complex carbs, more fat and protein. Give me examples. What would you eat with my boneless skinless chicken breast for dinner? What should I eat for lunch that I can brown bag? Later.

Wrong. That would be if the person wanted to get into better HEALTH. They simply want to lose weight, and for that, weightlifting's the wrong route.

If you know what you are doing, it is very easy to lift weights and lose weight. The trick is....you have to know what you are doing, and you have to know how your body responds to it.

When I was training for a marathon a couple years ago, I lost 20 pounds in 3 months with running, weightlifting and watching my nutrition very closely.

If you are a classic ectomorph, you can lift and will have a hard time packing on muscle. If you are a mesomorph, you can pack on muscle by walking up stairs (not literally, but you get my point). Anyone who has exercised at all in their lifetime and knows if they have a hard (or easy time) packing on muscle should know if they are one or the other. I lean more towards an Ectomorph, so I can lift a bunch and while I will gain a few pounds of muscle, I won't exactly look like Arnold, and I end up losing weight because I burn a lot of fat.

So yes......you can lose weight lifting weights.

If you know what you are doing, it is very easy to lift weights and lose weight. The trick is....you have to know what you are doing, and you have to know how your body responds to it.

When I was training for a marathon a couple years ago, I lost 20 pounds in 3 months with running, weightlifting and watching my nutrition very closely.

If you are a classic ectomorph, you can lift and will have a hard time packing on muscle. If you are a mesomorph, you can pack on muscle by walking up stairs (not literally, but you get my point). Anyone who has exercised at all in their lifetime and knows if they have a hard (or easy time) packing on muscle should know if they are one or the other. I lean more towards an Ectomorph, so I can lift a bunch and while I will gain a few pounds of muscle, I won't exactly look like Arnold, and I end up losing weight because I burn a lot of fat.

So yes......you can lose weight lifting weights.

Ah, but that wasn't a controlled study, because what you'll never know is: would you have lost more weight if you'd replaced the weight lifting with aerobics? While you CAN lose weight AND weight lift, you are likely to lose more weight while not weightlifting. Remember that muscles weight more than fat and/or water (although they are largely water), so any muscle you gain must be offset by more fat/water (in volume) to get back to even. I'd be willing to bet that if you had been tested for lean mass and bodyfat, you probably lost 24 lbs of fat over that period and gained 4 pounds of muscle. This is a GOOD thing and meant you were healthier for it, BUT meant you lost less weight.

Im hardly an expert, im not even a well informed person. But looking at a day or 2's worth of food, id say you rely way too much on convenience food.

You have lots of cliff bars, granola bars, breakfast bars, gels, canned pudding, etc.

Dont get me wrong, you dont need to make the best choice at every meal yet, just switching from a bad choice to a better choice each time you eat is well on the way to an improved lifestyle. Im sure what your eating now is a marked improvement over what you used to eat. It still can be made better though.

My biggest suggestion other than learning to drink your coffee black, is to eat more real food and less processed food. Take a peanut butter and jam sandwich and a banana instead of a 2 granola bars and gell. Make the sandwich with whole grain bread. Eat fruit instead of fruit juice, etc.

Its all a series of stages. You've already gone through a few stages in recognizing and trying. Oh and cutting sugar and creamer from coffee was a HUGE step for me, and I have about 8 cups a day, and own a $1000 espresso machine.

Ah, but that wasn't a controlled study, because what you'll never know is: would you have lost more weight if you'd replaced the weight lifting with aerobics? While you CAN lose weight AND weight lift, you are likely to lose more weight while not weightlifting. Remember that muscles weight more than fat and/or water (although they are largely water), so any muscle you gain must be offset by more fat/water (in volume) to get back to even. I'd be willing to bet that if you had been tested for lean mass and bodyfat, you probably lost 24 lbs of fat over that period and gained 4 pounds of muscle. This is a GOOD thing and meant you were healthier for it, BUT meant you lost less weight.

First off, I'm not exactly a beginner when it comes to exercising.....been doing this stuff the last 18 years, but what do I know....

Jarery, thanks for the tips. I am big on low fat breakfast bars for breakfast and for an afternoon snack its a low fat granola bar. I only hit up the Gels when I ride or workout and need a little extra boost. However, I do love the no fat chocolate snack pudding for lunch dessert. So the sugar goes starting tomorrow and fresh fruit with lunch is a must. I have lost 18 pounds so far and plan to continue even after the competition ends in April. It feels good to good. Later.

Howdy,

Good for you for being brave enough to post your fitday stats. I post mine for a day and chicken out and take them down ;) . (I have a lot of weight to lose!).

Can you plan your meals ahead at all? Buy and/or prepare your lunches ahead of time (so you aren't stuck with what's nearby at lunch time)? Here are some ideas that help me:

-Keep some oatmeal around at work and throw it in the microwave. I like the "old fashioned kind" -- no sugary flavors, just however much I add myself, and it holds up a little better. I cut up an apple and cook it with it -- with cinnamon, it provides some extra sweetness.

-Can you (or your wife?) make extra at dinner to take for lunch the next day? It sounds like your dinners are healthier than your lunches (?).

-Add some frozen fruit to your yogurt -- it's convenient, and adds more fiber and nutrients. Or even canned (in their own juice) with your cottage cheese.

-I'd try to set a goal of a certain number of fruits and veggies per day -- buy some nice precut ones you can throw in your lunch bag with you. Try some salsa or low-fat dressing (in moderation) if you don't like them plain. The fiber will help fill you up, help you cut down on the more refined carbs.

Your fat intake looks pretty decent, to me. I agree with your approach of changing things one thing at a time -- it makes for a better long-term, permanent change. I get really gung ho and try to change everything at once, only to be surprised when my sweettooth raises its head later. For me, it seems like if I get lots of nutritious fruits, veggies and lean protein, I don't crave the more simple carbs quite so much.

Good luck, and happy trails! The weight loss will probably make you go faster, too!

Marti

hey tandemCruzer thanks! i have taken the leap and what i have been eating has to be 100 times better for me then prior to this change. today i even removed the sugar from my coffee. i do love me some sweet coffee. still dumping in some no fat creamer but hey lets take small leaps. road for 18 chilly miles yesterday so i feel i am doing well. thanks for the tips. later.

I am in a "Biggest Loser" style contest at work that started Jan 4th. We have our final weigh in April 4th, which is five weeks away. I needed to change my eating habits and loss weight and this competition has given me a jump start. I am down 16.8 pounds on the official work scale. I have gotten this far by eating a low fat diet, lowering my daily calorie intake (2000 to 2500 per day), and doing cardio 3 to 5 days a week. I want to make sure I peak at the end of March for the weigh in? How can I max out my weight loss potential in a healthy way over this next month?

My Stats; 6'3'' 238.2 lbs at the start. I track my cals on fitday (http://fitday.com/WebFit/PublicJournals.html?Owner=aham23)

Thanks in advance. Later.

How much time do you have available for exercise? You can burn WAY more calories by lowering the intensity of your cardio workouts a little, and increasing the duration. I noticed one of your workouts was 30 min. at 200w, burning roughly 400 calories. If you drop the power down to 150w (or whatever) and ride for 90 min. you will burn ~900 cal. and the lower intensity is such that you can handle it day in, and day out.

cool. so less intensity with longer duration. the amount of time i have varies depending on work but i will give it a try. just on a side note the stationary bike activities are actually elliptical machine workouts, but fitday doesnt have this option. using it gets me close to the elliptical machine final workout numbers. i normally burn about 500 cals on that machine in 30 minutes. later.

How much time do you have available for exercise? You can burn WAY more calories by lowering the intensity of your cardio workouts a little, and increasing the duration. I noticed one of your workouts was 30 min. at 200w, burning roughly 400 calories. If you drop the power down to 150w (or whatever) and ride for 90 min. you will burn ~900 cal. and the lower intensity is such that you can handle it day in, and day out.

Yes, but it kills a lot more time. That's cool if you're out on the road and have the time to burn, so to speak.

But on a piece of indoor equipment, the name of the game for most people -- myself definitely included -- is how much Work you can get in before the boredom kills you -- if not that day, then such that you won't be able to motivate yourself to get back on after a few weeks or (if you're lucky) months. 30 min of high intensity sessions throughout the winter and inclement weather is a lot better than 90 minutes of medium intensity sessions for a couple weeks before you quit. And you would also have to have the extra hour a day to devote - I know I don't.

It comes down to total-calories burnt. If you can burn off 1000-cal/hr for two hours for 2000-calories total, great! But if you can only hold that pace for 30-minutes (500-cal burnt), then it may be better to slow down a bit so that you can burn off 1500-calories instead.

That's why I always advocate focusing on developing fitness and speed over monitoring weight. With better conditioning, you can ride faster and longer, thus burning more total calories in less time. Losing 1-lb/week will only require 10-hours of riding per week rather than 15. :)

Donate blood on the day of your weigh in.

Yes, but it kills a lot more time. That's cool if you're out on the road and have the time to burn, so to speak.

But on a piece of indoor equipment, the name of the game for most people -- myself definitely included -- is how much Work you can get in before the boredom kills you -- if not that day, then such that you won't be able to motivate yourself to get back on after a few weeks or (if you're lucky) months. 30 min of high intensity sessions throughout the winter and inclement weather is a lot better than 90 minutes of medium intensity sessions for a couple weeks before you quit. And you would also have to have the extra hour a day to devote - I know I don't.

That's why I asked how much time the OP has available for exercise. Don't rule out the possibility of getting discouraged by doing too much high intensity. If every time you step on the machine, you are doing a max. 30 min. effort, you may begin to dread working out. Personally, I can handle 90 min-2 hrs of "medium intensity" on an indoor trainer, even without the use of music, TV, or reading material. But that's just me. If boredom is an issue, you can try doing "mini-triathlons" like 30 min on the treadmill, 30 min on the bike, 30 min on the eliptical trainer, at the lower intensity.

You should also try a push up contest. Doing as many push ups as you can every day take less than a minute. Holding the body stiff also helps core torso strength.

If you have lost 18 lbs already then whatever you are doing is working.
If you want to add variety try a small circuit with 3 or 4 excercise's for example:
Pushups, squats with no weight, lat pulldowns, situps on the ball.
Do each excercise 15 reps, go right from one excercise to the next and do as many circuits as possible in 20 minutes, rest and pick another 3 or 4 excercises and repeat.
If you want to get really crazy try Crossfit.com and try a few of those workouts.
Good luck

Kenal0