Spartan112

I've been lucky, most people have been supportive though my 3 brothers in law jokingly told me I had to put on about 15-20#'s so their wives would stop bugging them.


I'm 6' and 196, I feel like I look pretty good but I still have a gut to get rid of. Don't worry about what they tell you, worry about what your doc says and how you feel.

StephenH

Reminds me of a story....catch a bunch of crabs, put 'em in a bucket...when one starts to climb out, the others will reach up and pull it back...sound familiar?

Wogster

Preachers don't preach on a topic, they preach on an exegesis (intense, short term, but detailed study) of a scripture passage, it is possible to give a one hour exegetical sermon on John 11:35, I heard one (but the preacher in question had a doctorate in preaching). The body as a temple, could work, when taking about it in the context of diet and exercise as part of a healthier lifestyle. Probably best to have ONE sermon on it, then have an information session at another time, which could be a bunch of sessions, depending on interest.

EasyEd

Good job Tom! I'm proud of you. Sorry your friends are playing those games with you. I watched my wife go through a similar thing recently. About a year ago, she was diagnosed type 2 diabetic. She completely changed her diet and started exercising some. She has lost about fify pounds and looks realy good. (even got a few comments from some friends of mine!) At family functions though, people keep trying to force feed her things no diabetic should eat. Cake, pie, etc. Her mom followed her around on her birthday with a piece of cake on a fork, trying to put it in her mouth! Her mother is a nurse. Figure that one out. Any way.... to answer your question, yes. It happens. I don't know why friends and family can be so unthinking and hurtful. Just pray for them. That's the only thing I can think to do. Keep up the good work!

Neil_B

Hi Tom,

While on the subject of obesity and how we perceive it...

https://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22477703/from/ET/?gt1=10755

HOUMA, La. - A 6-foot-3, 265-pound man says a restaurant overcharged him for his trips to the buffet line, then banned him and a relative because they're hearty eaters.....

....Labit and Borrelli said they felt discriminated against because of their size. "I was stunned, that somebody would say something like that. I ain't that fat, I only weigh 277," Borrelli said, adding that a waitress told him he looked like he a had a "baby in the belly."

yeamac 

Going from 260 to 190 will make anyone look drastically different, but at 6' 190 pounds you are no way thin or "too thin."

I am 6'1" and got down to about 192, and checking some of the charts on weight (no links handy, sorry) I was STILL considered overweight by most charts, with them saying I should be under 189 or maybe even 180 to be in a healthy weight category. I remember one chart saying if I got under 144 pounds then I would be considered too thin, but anything from like 144-180 was a healthy weight for me. Anything higher I was considered "overweight." I would imagine at your height and weight the charts would be about the same. So keep loosing, and with weight loss and and increase in leg strength, wait until you see how much easier hills will be!

twobikes

Last week I awoke during the night and listened for a while to the radio I have on the nightstand with ear buds and a key pad for tuning. I do not remember the program, but they were discussing a test, the results of which were that men with a little extra weight and "love handles" have more favorable mortality rates (longer lives) than those who weigh what the charts say they should. It was quite a shock to the medical community. I need to do a Google search for that study.

Wogster

Most of those charts are NOT medically based, they are what insurance companies use to determine rates. Weight can be affected by a number of factors, take two men:

This one:



And this one:



They both weigh about the same (~275), but have a very different level of health.

Now of course if you look more like the first guy then the second, then maybe you still have some work to do, really though, most of us aspire to being somewhere in the middle. To best determine overall health, visit your doctor, get some tests done, if those tests are all in the normal range, then don't worry about it.

Neil_B

The height and weight charts are guidelines, not production standards. I'm 6'1" as well, and the same charts give up to 195 pounds as 'healthy' weight for me. Yet my doctor, a chiropractor, two physical therapists, and several trainers at my gym all suggested 210-225 as ideal for me. I'm broad-shouldered and have a stocky build, which accounts for the difference.

tntom

Had the blood tests last week. All numbers were great. But I know I can climb better and ride longer 20lbs lighter.

SandraL

I'm the only overweight in all my family. So my mom keeps telling me to eat less and do some exercise. As soon as I tell her that I'm going to start a diet she start getting worried and ask me to eat more.

Now I'm living far from where she lives, but when we used to live together she instantly started baking bread, cookies and prepare delicious pasta even before I started the diet. I hate that. I would like to understand what are these people (like my mom) thinking, do they think that we can go to the other point of the line and end up bulimic or anorexic?

snaproll

I had someone ask me the other day if I was training for a marathon of if I was just sick. One of my very best friends continues to tell me I look sick and need to gain some weight. At 6' and 195 I'm hardly svelte. The fact that I've never had anyone who I thought had good body composition say anything like that to me (it's always the folks who I think could stand to lose some weight themselves) tells me there's more going on here than their concern for my health.

The members of your congregation who are trying to plump you up are being very shallow and are no doubt jealous people. You can love them without listening to them. Maybe a good topic for some Sunday morning would be gluttony, self control, jealousy, and brotherly love. "Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing. Now we ask you, brothers, to respect those who work hard among you..." - 1 Thessalonians 5:11

So if you'll accept encouragement from a non-Christian, keep up the great work and keep pushing that pie plate back.

aboyd

I lost 50 lbs this last year also, 304 to 254. I am 6'4" snd plan to drap at least another 40, maybe 50. Some of my friends say I will look too thin if I get down to 200, but I would feel good.

Tom Stormcrowe

Look, part of it is a perception issue. If you lose a large amount of weight, you can look a bit gaunt due to uneven fat distribution and slightly looser skin than someone that has been slimmer their whole life will. The skin doesn't shrink, and as you get heavier, you need more skin to cover the surface area. Once you grow the excess, it doesn't go away naturally. That is part of the reason, and it's actually pretty benign, unless you have a huge pannula (Belly Apron or flap of hang), and then you can get rashes and infections.

thaetviking

Maybe I missed it in the replies but what is your body fat percentage? If you have had it measured and it is within acceptable limits mention that to people. I realize that is not a definitive measure for someone's health but it does help in the talks about it.

Do you do any upper body workouts? I have seen a lot of people who lose weight neglect that part of their regiment and they do look sickly because all the loose skin is just hanging there. It is not going to solve it all but it will help some.

I was wondering if you spent a sermon talking about some of your health issues that you and your doctor have discussed before losing the weight may help. Along with that talk about the insurance cost to the people of the church for treating those problems. Open heart surgery is not cheap and transplant surgery is even worse with all the drugs you are on for life.

I read a couple of comments by people who say people within their own families have sabotaged their attempts at weight loss. If they do it through shopping try and and go with them. When they buy that stuff that you do not need put it back on the shelf. The cooking thing is tuff. I struggle with that one. I have a room mate who bakes cookies and I have a tuff time saying no. I do pretty good at limiting how many I have. Maybe taking them on the next trip to the doctor you may help.

Keep up the good work and remember that this forum board will support you in healthy weight loss

coldfeet

Now thats a compliment!

I have dropped 20 lbs in the last few months, mostly due to a good hour length bike commute. If anything I eat more than before. That puts me at 205 and 21% BF. I could be happy to lose another 10, but I would be even more pleased to lose another 2%

Oh, and people, it's lose , not loose. I wouldn't have brought it up but so many of you are doing it, it sets my teeth on edge!

P.S. I have also lost all signs of acid reflux, and some early indications of diabetes.

Tom Stormcrowe

Now, I was using loose in proper context

thaetviking

Good point Tom. Don't forget also that your eyes will sink backwards into your head. This can give a darker look to you. The gym I go to has a newsletter they put out. On the cover is a successful weight loss story. Here is the link: https://anytimefitness.com/experience/newsletter.aspx , look at the May 2007 issue. It is great that the guy lost a ton of weight but he needs a makeover. Maybe a new look will help you out.

coyboy

I can relate Tom but since you are doing much better than I am I dont really have any advise. My dad is a preacher (still is) and for as long as I can remember we have a diiner every second Sunday. When I was a kid (12 to 17) I could eat like a horse and one little lo lady always brought 2 strawberry pies and one was for me. They seem to take great pride in seeing thier food eaten and I was always happy to oblige. i would eat 2 plate fulls and then the pie. Fast forward 30 or so years (now 45) I went from a muscular 200 to a fat 244. I got a bike in August 2006 but have not lost much weight. i still like to eat...but my HR has droped from 72 bpm to around 52 bpm and I am not as fat in the face. my leags are in much better shape as well. Oh well, good luck with the folks at church. just keep it up. I hope this year I do better.

neilfein

I'm not at all certain that preaching about gluttony would help any here. tntom wants the congregation to simply support what he's doing, and perhaps tip some thinking towards healthier lifestyles. I'd think the best thing to do would be leading by example, with perhaps a subtle nudge here and there.

coldfeet

Yes, yes you were, and used lose correctly too. Sorry, didn't mean to be such a pedant, but after about the third poster doing it, I kind of "loost' it.

tntom

loose,loose,loose,loose,loose

Sorry just couldn't help myself.

Neil_B

Agreed. He should simply be the lite of his church, if not the lite of the world. Sorry, couldn't resist the pun. :=>

urban rider

When you lose a lot of weight like that people no longer have the "fat" friend in which they can compare themselves. I know that girlfriends don't want you around their boyfriend and guys don't want you around their girls. I say continue to take care of your health and forget the naysayers.

Gas, .69 cents, the price of a can of beans

Neil_B

I lost at least one friendship because of my weight loss. I've also seen other friendships lessen and grow as I've become lighter.; It's not the shell that's changed, it's the person inside who is different.