ODT 7 week fitness challenge

[Horsehat]

I'm 58 and weighed 235lbs this morning. I need to get back into a fitness routine. Dust off my bike and back to stretching and weight training. My diet needs improvement to. My energy level is low. I'm in. Doing this as a group will be motivating. BTW what is plank?

https://www.google.com/search?q=plank&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&hl=en-us&client=safari#imgrc=bofsBHyrNhLJOM:

 

[palmettomoon]

225?

Your ideal weight? In your opinion, or a professional opinion? lol

I'm 6'3" in the a.m. settling to about 6'2" in the evening. 225 is a good weight for me. Anything less and my hip bones stick out like a starvation victim.

 

[Gunanddoglover]

https://www.google.com/search?q=plank&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&hl=en-us&client=safari#imgrc=bofsBHyrNhLJOM:

Thank you

 

[Vman]

A big thing people have to be mindful of is setting unrealistic goals. Most people can't be eating pizza and chugging beer one day and switch to oatmeal and water the next. A "diet" should simply be something you can realistically maintain at least at first. If you acclimate to that and you want to go after more hardcore goals later then you need to adjust your "diet" to your goals. Obviously if you want to lose a Lot of weight you have to eat less and eat cleaner. If you want to add muscle/bulk up you have to eat more. If you currently are not continuously gaining weight even without extra physical activity but you want to lose some (5-10 lbs) and get in better shape then really all you need to do is start doing the work. Maintaining current eating but adding physical exercise is going to drop a few pounds just due to the fact that you are shocking your system. Also for anyone that doesn't know, muscle is heavier than fat so if you are working out with weights don't base progress strictly by the scale! The mirror and how your clothes fit are better indicators. Muscle also burns more calories even at rest so my personal suggestion would not be to pursue only cardio for weight loss unless you just enjoy running/biking. You'll need to do more "work" just doing cardio than weightlifting or lifting with some cardio.

 

[CPA9mm]

mods, if this is in the wrong area please move, we need a fitness and wellness forum, by the way.
I am probably in better shape than the average American 63 year old but really want to kick my fitness up a notch. Beginning Monday I am going to hit a more intense workout regimen and focus on diet including calorie reduction and increasing protein intake for the next 7 weeks until Monday October 8. One key metric I am looking for is weight reduction, I want to go from 208 where I am currently to 195 during this time. Other goals are harder to quantify but also important such as improving my cardio vascular system and improving core strength and increased endurance. Will probably track length of time I can plank and number of push-ups as well as weight.
Will be posting my results here each Monday. As misery loves company it would be great if some other fat old guys or even fit younger guys wanted to join me in this. Not looking for wagers on this just improving what is probably the greatest determinate of quality of life in later years, fitness.
Hope you will join me.

I'm a little younger and scrawnier than you but I have something to add as far as weight reduction. About 10 years ago in my late 40's I was struggling with joint pain in multiple places. My Dr. and the Rheumatologist he sent me to both said nothing was wrong. It got so bad I struggled to grab a car door handle or golf club. After a year bouncing around on the web I decided to give up wheat and within a month my joint pain was better. Although I was not overweight, my weight dropped down to what it was my Jr. year of high school and stayed there. Not saying it is right for everybody but you shouldn't have to wait long to find out if it works.

 

[crippen]

Maybe a few simple categories for us to improve. Whatever we are doing for cardio should show up in the two heart rate categories.

 

[Horsehat]

View attachment 1746013

Maybe a few simple categories for us to improve. Whatever we are doing for cardio should show up in the two heart rate categories.

This looks good and is easy to quantify, it would also be highly relevant to my personal goals. My starting pull up number will be easy to build on. I am good going with this but would urge others to add or delete to personalize your goals.

 

[DADI03]

Guys,

I'm 5-9 bout 148-152 and I eat healthily and work out consistently. I'm here to give you guys some tips as far as diet goes so that you can eat tasty foods, but still get the results you want. This is what works for me.

Brief disclosure, it will suck coming down in weight because it's more draining for your body break down and use its own fat reserves as energy rather than you eating something, it's just how the body's engine works. So expect to be tired, a little overwhelmed at times and experiencing a general lack of sustainable energy (If you work, 2 hours into work you may get tired, whereas before the diet you could last 3-4 hours).

However, once you've reached your goal weight the lack of energy will even out and everything will be back to normal in about 2-3 weeks of maintaining your goal weight. So don't quit on your diet because it's hard, because it will be just the same as now once you've made it to your goal, except you'll be in that much better shape, have increased energy and stamina, and be that much healthier.

This is a weight cutting diet, so it will give you enough energy to do what you need to do, but it will still suck none the less, just remember that once you've reached your weight, you'll simply increase portion sizes of these foods to keep the weight (and you won't get hungry/weak, don't worry).

Breakfast
2 Whole eggs (use a small amount of healthy oil like coconut oil to cook them in)
30grams of uncooked Old fashioned oatmeal with 30grams of frozen fruit you can get a Walmart (blueberries are my fav) add water and cook it.
1/2 a tomato with seasoning to taste

Lunch
Lean meat about 5-7oz cooked (hamburger patty with grease squeezed out of it and melted cheese if my favorite, get the cheese that you cut off a block. Fish and chicken are also acceptable)
The easiest thing to eat with the meat is a medium size salad with fresh tomatoes, cucumbers olives whatever vegetables you like, and no ranch dressing, find a vinaigrette you like, or just use oil and vinegar with salt and pepper. Salsa/hot sauce is acceptable.

Dinner
The same idea as lunch, just be sure to get your dinner in you about 3-4 hours before you plan to go to sleep

Snack
Grab a bag of Roasted almonds (salted) and have 1 small handful (maybe 15 almonds) as a snack when you desperately want something to eat but you've still got a few hours until your next meal. I don't advise eating fruit as snacks because the fruit is based on sugars where the nuts are based on fats, which will keep you full longer. The sugars will fill you temporarily, but make you want more in a very short amount of time. You can eat a lot of fruit once you reach your goal weight (I do).

Beverages
A glass of tea or a soda will contain tremendous amounts of sugar which will put you way over your caloric goals.
Learn to drink water, just water. Get some purified water by the case and enjoy it. No diet sodas, absolutely not.
Coffee, if you like it, keep drinking it. Just don't add sugar, honey, agave, etc. All you get to add is your favorite flavor of liquid coffee creamer (any kind you like, don't worry about the sugar in it, this is the only time you'll get any, if you only have 2-3 8oz cups of coffee each day then it won't matter. The coffee will still taste good and not bitter).

I'd recommend these portions for guys at 185lbs or less that want to come down to 150-160. If you're larger than 185 I'd suggest you take into consideration what you normally eat, compare it to these numbers, and make the adjustments needed, but you should get hungry about 2 hours before you eat every meal, this is when your body will run out of food to use as energy and start using body fat, it's important that you get this feeling (means it's working).

Guys, a digital food scale is $10-15 and will help to measure the oatmeal (carbs) so it's important that you don't overdo it there. You can also measure out bulk meat and freeze it individually.

Also, a digital scale to weigh yourself on is about $20-30. You'll want to weigh yourself every morning after you use the bathroom (weighing with clothes on changes the weight so do something consistent like just boxers)

Take progress pics if you like, and take note of your weight now and moving forward. Just weigh yourself every morning and you'll see, the pounds start to drop, and if you fudge on something, you'll see that on the scale as well.

In case you wonder what I eat now. I eat eggs with cheese, avocados, onions, tomatoes, lettuce, peaches, apples w/peanut butter, chicken, hamburger steak with cheese, greek yogurt, occasional rice dish, random occasional piece of cake or brownie, bananas, occasional oatmeal with cinnamon raisins and peanut butter, coffee with creamer only, water to drink, occasional fried chicken, occasional meal at restaurant with "heavy sides" like biscuits, desert, etc.

The staple of my diet is healthy food, so I can eat whatever I want occasionally.

Feel free to ask me questions. I can help you guys with workout routines if you need them as well.

Good Luck!

This is very similar to the diet I used last year. I lost 55 LBS. It was brutal but worth it. I have maintained my weight since then but would like to lose some more. I have been wanting to get back into it one more time and lose the rest. I have been around 185 ish, would love to be about 170 ish.

I'm in for the challenge. Post up what you want to use, and it probably wouldn't hurt to start a fresh thread for it as well

 

[Horsehat]

This is very similar to the diet I used last year. I lost 55 LBS. It was brutal but worth it. I have maintained my weight since then but would like to lose some more. I have been wanting to get back into it one more time and lose the rest. I have been around 185 ish, would love to be about 170 ish.

I'm in for the challenge. Post up what you want to use, and it probably wouldn't hurt to start a fresh thread for it as well

Will start a fresh thread Monday at the start.

View attachment 1746013

Maybe a few simple categories for us to improve. Whatever we are doing for cardio should show up in the two heart rate categories.

Going to use these metrics, folks can customize as meets their goals. This is not about beating someone else in a contest to me but moving the needle as far as I can personally. It is fun to compare and keeps me motivated to know others are in the same fight.

 

[Gunanddoglover]

Posting before, during, and after pictures are good motivation. Just one thing, NO BANANA HAMMOCK pictures. T-shirt and shorts are sufficient.
I will set up my routine and goals this weekend and post them.