AFF Weight Gain/Loss Program

[blueoval]

Your doing great Mark. Keep at it.

[pundit]

A bit of a progress pic from today. My goal was 95 by the end of next month but I got it today so rather happy with that.

[FPV8U]

Impressive weight loss, keep it up mate!

[blueoval]

pundit - well done and congrats on your progress mate. Be proud of yourself mate. This is just the beginning.

[pundit]

Originally Posted by blueoval

pundit - well done and congrats on your progress mate. Be proud of yourself mate. This is just the beginning.

Thanks heaps fella!

Originally Posted by FPV8U

Impressive weight loss, keep it up mate!

Thanks alot dude!

Was great I had a mate inbox me on facey lastnight after I posted that pic saying that he has started a weight loss journey and I was his motivation. As silly as it sounds for me that was actually a rather proud/rewarding moment. Felt "on top of the world" so to speak.

[Rev28K]

There might be something to diet and exercise. I just had a very busy work month and in the last two weeks I was eating junk, rarely exercising and working my bum off.

Result 3 kg heavier than my normal heavy and my clothes don't fit right (tight in all of the wrong places). I must get back in to it.....

[Spudz27]

I forgot to take before pics as 14wks ago had no intention of losing weight. So here is a pic from 8wks ago and a pic from today. I have not really lost much weight, in 8wks, but am toning up and my muscles are building. My legs are already pretty strong from carrying all the weight aroud, I found I am doing leg press of 70kg, the one where your thighs push out I am at 75kg and the thighs puling in is 55kg. I do 2 sets of 10 pull ups at 35kg (this particular machine counters your weight, so you only lift whaat you can) and one set of 10 push up or whaatever they are called (a reverse pullup lol), all other machines I do 2 reps at 25-30kg. So there will be a point I can't get aany bigger as medically I am already pushing the boundary. My cardio is 5mins cross trainer at level 15, keeping at 80spm or higher, 5min bike at level 7 or 8 keeping at 90rpm or higher, do my strength exercises and finish with 15mins treadmill at 6km with a 3% grade, but I increase the grade to 10% every 5 mins for 1 min.

8wks ago



Today


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Also found a new breakky shake to make. 1cup almond milk, handful of mixed berries, half a banana, handful of spinach, tablespoon of chia seeds, my usual 2 tablespoons of chocolate meal shaake and 2 tablespoons of protein powder. Is pretty delicious.

[pundit]

Bit of a proud moment.

Its currently fit week at jetts in SA. My local jetts have their best success story up on the wall whixh happens to be yours truly. Very very proud moment for me feels like a bit of acknowledgement for thw hard work.



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[MWTB]

Checking in with another progress update. Still going strong

[blueoval]

Originally Posted by MWTB

Checking in with another progress update. Still going strong

image

Looking svelte mark!!! Awesome work.

[MWTB]

Thanks mate! I've been getting a lot more female attention over the past few weeks which makes it even more worth it Also, my name is Matt!

[pundit]

Originally Posted by MWTB

Thanks mate! I've been getting a lot more female attention over the past few weeks which makes it even more worth it Also, my name is Matt!

The wemmems make it all the more worth while ey bro!

[blueoval]

Originally Posted by MWTB

Thanks mate! I've been getting a lot more female attention over the past few weeks which makes it even more worth it Also, my name is Matt!

ah s### sorry MATT.

[MWTB]

Originally Posted by blueoval

ah s### sorry MATT.

Hahaha no worries mate!

[Spudz27]

Can a mod please delete my large photo, I can't exit it now and not sure why it is so big as I resized it before posting.

Latest progress pics. Not really losing weight, but toning. However can anyone shed light on removing side fat? I can't wear the nice shirts I want because the front is o.k, but my side looks totally stupid as my chest goes in, then my stupid wings curve back out. I hate it, everyone tells me how good I am looking atm, but I do not think the same way and it is because f the wings on my side.





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[toothless]

i too want to start loosing wieght because 7 months ago i gave up smoking when i found out i was coughing up blood i have started riding the bike with the kids to school and take the long way back home this is a average of 80mins of excise a day or if you call it that

is there anything else i should do

i have whole grain toast for breaky
sweet chille tune for lunch and maybe a apple or 2 inbetween

i have been doing it for 3 weeks and i have not noticed a change

[Spudz27]

Sounds like your doing plenty of cardio, the best thing I found is to limit my calories to about 1200 which is 400 below ideal, high protein and low fat. I still eat fairly normal. I make a shake for breakky, meal powder, protein powder, cup of hilo, handfull of mixed berries, half a banana, baby spinach, ice and chia seeds. Blend it up and it is around 300cal and keeps me good till lunch, usually ham and salad on organic mixed grain sour bread again about 300cal, then dinner is usually just what I would normally cook and adds about 400 cal and then I still manage desert lol. Desert is where I end up with fat and high sugar, but calories for the day still end up being 1200-1300 which is below the 1650 allowed. I do cheat a little and add the 180 odd I burn at the gym which means desert can be ice cream lol. The opposite is starving yourself. If you are riding 80min a day and eating that little food, your body could be starving and that will kill your metabolism.

[toothless]

Originally Posted by Spudz27

Sounds like your doing plenty of cardio, the best thing I found is to limit my calories to about 1200 which is 400 below ideal, high protein and low fat. I still eat fairly normal. I make a shake for breakky, meal powder, protein powder, cup of hilo, handfull of mixed berries, half a banana, baby spinach, ice and chia seeds. Blend it up and it is around 300cal and keeps me good till lunch, usually ham and salad on organic mixed grain sour bread again about 300cal, then dinner is usually just what I would normally cook and adds about 400 cal and then I still manage desert lol. Desert is where I end up with fat and high sugar, but calories for the day still end up being 1200-1300 which is below the 1650 allowed. I do cheat a little and add the 180 odd I burn at the gym which means desert can be ice cream lol. The opposite is starving yourself. If you are riding 80min a day and eating that little food, your body could be starving and that will kill your metabolism.

not sure i do weigh about 140 im 6.2 my goal is to weigh at least 100kg again

[MWTB]

Going that low on calories is a bad idea man. Sure you'll lose weight, but you'll do yourself some serious metabolic damage.

Work out your BMR (basic metabolic rate) which is what your body needs if you were comatose doing nothing, and then work out your TDEE (total daily energy expenditure) which is what your body actually needs including the daily physical work you do. My BMR is 2300 calories, but my TDEE is 4200.

How do I know this metabolic damage (starvation mode for the layman or adaptive thermogenesis for those who like to get technical) thing is for real and not just an internet phenomenon like people think it is? Because it happened to me.

I was on 1500 calories (I weigh my food, I am precise) for 2 months. I lost a few kg and then stopped. I was doing heavy weight training every day and cardio afterwards for 30 minutes or more. I also work an extremely physical job. It is not possible that I was not losing weight if my metabolism was working as it should. After a lot of research I read about this adaptive thermogenesis and read that to remedy this, you eat at, or slightly above your maintenance (BMR) for a few weeks to see if it helps. It also states that you might put on a kg or two, but that is normal.

So I did. And I did put that kg on. But now, as I am eating 2500-2600 calories a day, I am losing weight again where I was not on 1500.

Please don't fall into the trap like I did. Less calories is BAD. They say you shouldn't lose more than a kg per week for a good reason.

Pleeeease, don't do to yourself what I did to myself. I lost 34kg in 6 months, which is a great achievement even if I say so myself, but I'd rather have only lost 25 and had steady loss rather than deal with the demotivation of stepping on the scale after a month of eating 1500 calories and doing 10 or more hours of exercise a week to find I hadn't dropped even half a kg.

I should also add, on a brighter note, that I start a Master Personal Trainer course at the Australian Institute of Fitness in 2 weeks

[b0son]

Originally Posted by MWTB

I was on 1500 calories (I weigh my food, I am precise) for 2 months. I lost a few kg and then stopped. I was doing heavy weight training every day and cardio afterwards for 30 minutes or more. I also work an extremely physical job. It is not possible that I was not losing weight if my metabolism was working as it should.

A 1000cal deficit, and NO weight loss?

Lets do the math.

1000Cal = the energy required to heat 1000kg water by 1 deg, or 50kg of water by 20deg.

Your body is 50-60% water, so say 50kg water (wont worry about the non-water parts of the body in this example).

To maintain weight (in this context, I mean not burn glycogen/fat/protein)while doing all that you were, AND get a 1000Cal deficit, your body temperature would have to have dropped by close to 20deg. Did it? If it did, you wouldn't be here to post about it.

What actually happened was:

1. your BMR was lower than you thought. it drops as your weight drops. your TDEE drops as your weight drops too.

2. you were retaining water. significant calorie deficits increase cortisol. intense exercise increases cortisol. cortisol increases water retention (this should make sense as water is the most critical nutrient you need in the short-term).

At the end of the day, a calorie deficit causes your body to burn stored fuel. Yes, there are studies that show significant calorie deficits lead to *some* sparing of fat, but this is more related to sparing of brown fat (which your body burns for heat) not so much white fat (which is by far the most abundant in the body).

Metabolic damage is just the latest term being thrown around by the bodybuilding/fitness industry, and its quite frankly a load of rubbish. There is no damage, its simply an adaptive response that can easily be accounted for, and reversed (and very quickly).

[blueoval]

I reckon you'll be a kickass PT Matt.

[MWTB]

Thanks mate! I already train a few mates, I've noticed them getting bigger and stronger through advice I've given and diets I've written for them and it feels great. I'm mainly doing the course for my own knowledge but I am also looking to study Nutrition and Dietetics so hopefully I can work as a PT while studying

[MWTB]

Why is it that two friends of mine who have just last year finished studies at university, one for nutrition and one for a masters in dietetics both told me the same thing, which is what I relayed in my post then?

I understand the role of cortisol, but how is it possible that I was on 1500 calories, not losing or gaining, yet I have since upped my calories to 2500-3000 per day and I am still not gaining or losing? How does cortisol related water retention explain that? Yes, I may be gaining muscle but not enough to disguise the amount of fat I should be losing per week.

I am still 110kg. My BMR should be approximately 2400 calories. Then factor in the fact that I go to the gym 6 days a week, lift 4 days a week and work an extremely active job. My TDEE is well over 4000 calories per day. And I was not losing on 1500? I weigh my food. I was not over eating. I was usually under 1500. 3 grilled chicken breasts per day, 200g broccoli, 200g green beans and 100g sweet potato was basically my diet.

Also I realise it can be reversed, that's what I'm in the process of doing at the moment by eating closer to my TDEE.

[b0son]

Originally Posted by MWTB

Why is it that two friends of mine who have just last year finished studies at university, one for nutrition and one for a masters in dietetics both told me the same thing, which is what I relayed in my post then?

They're quoting you ideas out of context. Starvation and semi-starvation are two different situations. Outright starvation can lead to metabolic dysfunction, semi-starvation typically does not (provided no shortfall of micro-nutrients). Google the Minnesota experiment.

I understand the role of cortisol, but how is it possible that I was on 1500 calories, not losing or gaining

Water retention. Its certainly more likely given your activity level and calorie intake.

yet I have since upped my calories to 2500-3000 per day and I am still not gaining or losing? How does cortisol related water retention explain that? Yes, I may be gaining muscle but not enough to disguise the amount of fat I should be losing per week.

How do you know? Have you been going for dexa scans? You're just taking guesses. Access to Wikipedia doesn't make it an educated guess, no offense.

I am still 110kg. My BMR should be approximately 2400 calories.

based on... ? what is your bodyfat %?

Then factor in the fact that I go to the gym 6 days a week, lift 4 days a week and work an extremely active job. My TDEE is well over 4000 calories per day.

Are you measuring waistline? You would be surprised how much muscle gain can disguise weight loss.

The whole point of my little calculation above is to demonstrate to you that you're looking for a complicated explanation to a simple situation. You cant have a caloric deficit, maintain bodyfat/muscle, and maintain your body temperature and organ function, simultaneously. Its simply impossible.

If your nutritionist friends covered even an ounce of chemistry in their course, they'd realise this. The course has some serious gaps. They look at big picture stuff, not at the nuts and bolts of how/why.

[MWTB]

Originally Posted by b0son

Water retention. Its certainly more likely given your activity level and calorie intake.

If this is the case, I am relieved, but I've done a lot of reading and my friends who actually have done the studies and are qualified have told me otherwise. I can't say this in any way without sounding like a smart ***, but I'm not trying to be, but what qualifies you to tell me this over them? Again, no offense intended, I'm just trying to separate science from bro science.

How do you know? Have you been going for dexa scans? You're just taking guesses. Access to Wikipedia doesn't make it an educated guess, no offense.

I have not, I'm just not convinced that I can gain enough muscle and water while still technically in a major calorie deficit to hide weight loss on the scale?

based on... ? what is your bodyfat %?
Around 25%


Are you measuring waistline? You would be surprised how much muscle gain can disguise weight loss.
I try to, but I fear I don't do it correctly. I feel like I always hold the tape too tight or too loose and I think that is throwing my measurements.

The whole point of my little calculation above is to demonstrate to you that you're looking for a complicated explanation to a simple situation. You cant have a caloric deficit, maintain bodyfat/muscle, and maintain your body temperature and organ function, simultaneously. Its simply impossible.

If your nutritionist friends covered even an ounce of chemistry in their course, they'd realise this. The course has some serious gaps. They look at big picture stuff, not at the nuts and bolts of how/why.

Again, if you could tell me how you know all this and why you know more then them then I would be more than happy to take your advice over theirs. I'm not trying to be ignorant, I'm just taking their word as gospel at the moment because I know for a fact that they have both done the study. No offense to you was intended mate, I hope it didn't come across like that.

[b0son]

Originally Posted by MWTB

Again, if you could tell me how you know all this and why you know more then them

Biochemist, PhD.

[AU Mont]

1200 for women, and 1500 calorie diet for men is a pretty stock standard thing when it comes to losing weight.

If your weight loss stalled, then theres something else going on. Eating 2400-3000 a day is going backwards imo

[Road Games]

Hello again

Thought i might chip in as i went on Lite n' Easy for a few months to lose some of my gut but didnt really lose anything on the 1800 calorie plan ..

I dropped to 1500 and then 1200 but nothing worked to kill my cravings except i drank more grog of an evening...

http://www.fordforums.com.au/showpos...7&postcount=22

So fast forward to today

I now plan every meal diligently and there is NO Alcohol in the house or JUNK food...

I have lost a few kg's this week but more importantly the cravings are gone ..

I am eating Kangaroo meat and way more vegetables than ever before..

My water intake is up and my caffiene intake is down...

I have a personal trainer that i visit every morning at 6am and i do Tapout XT of an afternoon against her wishes...

I have been off work with a knee ailment that is preventing me from bending/walking so this is bloody hard work!

I am fatigued but i know longer crave rubbish food's or alcohol....

This is the only forum i frequent now and i dont sit still for longer than 1hr if i can help it, so i thought i might share the fact my lifestyle changes are definately working for me ...

plus i am an Alcoholic

If anyone would like me to scan up the nutritional eating plans i have been following feel free to ask ..

Peace out
Daz..x..

[MWTB]

Wouldn't mind taking a look at your diet plan if that's alright. Keen to shake it up a bit from the diet I've written myself.

[pundit]

How is everyone going with their weight gain and loss?

I have had a slack week, went to AFF nats and that kinda stuff, interstate trip = never too healthy.. Spesh prinny laps on a friday night..

Anyways not too sure where I am, at currently on the scales.. But I am sorta impressed with this bit of a before and after pic.. The right is a pic from the computer at the gym from when I first signed up