Any suggestions for getting back into shape?

joey48442 wrote: Here's a question- calories in, calories out. But a hundred calories of almonds can't be the same as 100 calories of hot dog... Right? If I'm trying to maintain 2200 calories a day, do I count all calories the same?

For the purposes of losing/gaining weight, yes. A Calorie is just a measurement of energy. Unused energy must be stored. Additional energy needed must be supplied by onboard reserves.

The difference is that healthy foods will generally be less Calorie dense, so you'll physically have more food volume in you to feel full; and they tend to have more of other vitamins, minerals, and healthy oils that you need, which will make you feel better and frequently turn off/down your bodies "I'm hungry" triggers it gives when it is looking for nutrients.

Guys I can't thank you all enough for you're suggestions. I'm 34 and as for my weight, last time I jumped on a scale I was sitting close to 280. Most people wouldn't guess more than 230-240 so hopefully that says something. Weight loss, cardio, and lung capacity are the goals, size and strength (and a little more $$ in the bank) would hopefully just be a happy byproduct. I used to be able to take a lungfull of air, swim down 30ft or so, swim around looking at stuff and then come back up. I once had someone jump on me and try to push me back under when I was coming up, (teenager) he flipped out when I grabbed him around the chest and flipped back over heading back down. I'll see if I can't snap a pic of my "pool" later on.

As for calories in/out yeah I know I need to track it. I'm giving myself some lee-way on that at the moment. Jelly beans have been great for when I've been craving today. "no fat" but the calories are there. I've cut out the soda's for the most part. I allow myself a can at dinner, and it's pretty much water any other time.

Gamby, that's awesome!!!

914Driver. The smell already drives me nuts, you can't smell it when you're smoking. But take a 12 hour break from it, and wow... My wife is at least being accomidating now. she's going outside, or to the bathroom to smoke. vs just smoking in the living room or bedroom. Still scrubbing everything to knock down some of the smell. Oh and I work from home, telecommuting, it's kinda easy when you don't have to go outside.

N Sperlo, thanks for the heads up on the whey protien isolate, That was going to be in my next round of questions. Suppliments, but one step at a time. Get rid of the cigs first.

You could try bike fake-commuting to/from work. Plan a route in your neighborhood. Get up and get dressed, and bike a circuit back "to work". When you're done, reverse the circuit. Make it something easy, like just a mile or two to start.

Another idea that I know sounds kind of silly, but maybe try one of those exercise/yoga balls as a desk chair. You don't need to completely replace your regular chair with it, but spend 30 minutes on it here or there, and it will help you burn a few extra calories and tone balancing muscles while you're just sitting.

And way to go on cutting back those cigarettes!

Congrats on the decision to quit - it's a tough one! Here's a trick I used when I quit 15 years ago to help purify the lungs.... throw a towel over your head and breathe in the steam from a pot of boiling water to which a few tablespoons of Buckley's has been added. You'll be surprised how much it will help you cough up the nasty residue. Do some strength training to develop your muscles before straining your joints – you'll help prevent knee injuries. A mat, set of weights and yoga ball are all you need for a terrific workout - abs, hamstring curls, squats, lunges. Good luck!

joey48442 wrote: Here's a question- calories in, calories out. But a hundred calories of almonds can't be the same as 100 calories of hot dog... Right? If I'm trying to maintain 2200 calories a day, do I count all calories the same? Joey

This is an excellent tool that everyone can learn from

http://www.livestrong.com/myplate/

Input everything you eat and be honest. You'll soon learn how costly (calorie wise) some foods can be.

You may have to register to use the my plate feature, but I haven't received any emails or any spam from them. Awesome tool.

Hashing! It's the most fun way to exercise.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hash_House_Harriers

Great stuff everyone. Keep it coming. I'm fixing to crash for the night. Cracked and had half a cig tonight. Threw it out, its funny how quickly.the taste of something can turn that foul to you.

Wait until you have the time to read this but this gals info makes sense mostly. Her hubby is a well known health fanatic as well, a link to him is in the text. Good luck!

http://www.thehealthandwellnessqueen.com/

Spinout007 wrote: Gamby, that's awesome!!!

Thanks mang. I hope it inspires you. It's VERY do-able. I'm not some super athletic dude. I do a lot of athletic stuff, but I've never been a good athlete. I'm a regular guy doing this stuff.

FWIW, I wanted to shed the 7 lbs of holiday bloat I acquired, so I started screwing around with a keto (low/no carb) diet. Veg and protein (eggs/meat/whey) and not much else. I weighed 192 on Tuesday and I'm 186.5 as of this morning. I'm STUNNED at the result because I never tried it.

It was more of a "cleanse", but dammit if it didn't shed a lot of BS weight. I don't plan on making it my lifestyle--I'm only going to do it through tomorrow and then I'll back off. I always hated hearing that bread is the devil, but I guess it's mostly true. When the 30+ mile bike rides start up again with warmer weather, I'll get more carbs in my diet again, but for now, I think I'm going to greatly reduce my refined carb intake.

At the same time, I've been on my bike trainer an hour a day for the past 3 days, did pushups/kettlebell swings/balance ball planks yesterday and chinups and curls today.

It's basically impossible to gain muscle mass while losing weight, but that shouldn't stop you from doing some sort of strength training. Whey protein shake 20 minutes after workouts helped me keep muscle mass while I lost weight.

Read up on the keto thing and the whey protein after workout thing to get you more acquainted with the process. Read a lot, but be sure you're getting it from reputable sources. A lot of info online is "bro-science", which isn't always healthy/effective.

Congratulations! I'm excited for you.

I was smoking 5 packs a day when I quit. That was 26 years ago. I'd been smoking for 13 years. I was 25 years old, and the doctor told me I had the lung capacity of an 80 year old man. Something had to change.

It's not easy. I had to give up on most of my friends (who all smoked), stop drinking (cause beer seemed to need a cigarette to go with it), quit coffee (there's no way I could do coffee without a smoke). I even borrowed someone else's car (my truck wouldn't start until I lit up).

Took me over a year and a half. It was a couple years before I got my lung capacity back.

The training, weight loss, etc. are all super, but NOTHING WILL IMPROVE YOUR HEALTH MORE THAN QUITTING. It is well worth it.

The impact of a pack of cigarettes on your heart is equivalent to something like 100 lbs of extra weight, so focus on the smoking. Most people gain a bit when they quit. Give yourself permission for a season.

While jelly beans sound like lousy therapy, if they work, fine. It's easy to quit them later (I used a breath mint called "Mint Condition which came in a flip-top box, satisfying my hand habits as well). Pull out all the stops.

Oh, and stop counting your failures. Start counting your successes. Instead of saying "I only smoked 4 cigarettes", or "Cracked and had half a cig", figure out how many you DIDN'T have. If you are a 2 pack a day smoker, you didn't smoke 36 cigarettes on that day that you had 4. I kept track of the smokes I DIDN'T HAVE on a calender.

Ask your friends to be jerks about it. Lean on you, text you, check in with you every day. Nothing like a good nag to keep you on track!

Keep us posted!

Ranger50 wrote: I'll echo gamby's post, start small and increase as you feel comfortable, and add that getting rid of toxic people, you know the ones that push all the buttons you don't want pushed or provoke behaviors you are letting go of, are the best first steps.

this

Pretty much like being a recovering addict. If you have friends who smoke constantly and aren't supportive of your attempt at a lifestyle change, then you WILL fail.

1988RedT2 wrote: Yoga. Don't laugh, it works. I cycle as the weather permits, do pull-ups, push-ups, sit-ups, and some kettlebell exercises. You don't need a fancy gym or a bunch of equipment to get a super workout. Just do something every day.

OMG, my doppelganger.

Don't beat yourself up if you "cracked" and had half a cigarette. Keep your long term goal in mind. Quitting cold turkey isn't easy and not right for everyone. I quit about 15 years ago, but didn't do it cold turkey. At my peak, I smoked just under a pack a day. Over the course of 6 months, I dropped down slowly. I'm not saying to go light up a smoke and don't worry about it. My point is as long as you have it set in your heart that you're quitting, and follow through with it, that's what's important.

Honestly, I wouldn't worry about whey protein or any other supplements right now. As long as you get protein in your natural diet from things such as lean meats, nuts, milk products, that'll be fine for now. The protein shakes are more important when you're looking to add muscle mass. Fats are not your enemy, don't cut them out. It's making sure you get the right quantity of the right fats. Saturated fats = bad juju. Unsaturated fats (in the right amounts) = good.

As I mentioned before, I think one of the most important things to remember is that it's a marathon, not a sprint. It's going to take time to get where you want to be, stay with it. I'm a weightlifter, runner, good nutrition person and my wife is a hardcore bodybuilder. We dabbled in it for years, but really dove into it about 5 years ago. I added about 20lbs (I was a scrawny toothpick) since then, but it took time...lots of time.

Well made it so far today, took a 1.5 mile walk today as well. Didn't die, I guess that's good.

I had a dream last night about a pedal powered Miata, maybe you should make one. Once again the answer is Miata...

In reply to bgkast:

I've currently got 3 inop miatas sitting on the property. I might be able.to come up with something.

I am another that resembled your exact lifestyle. I have always kind of been a light gym guy, even when I smoked. I would do 30-45 min on the elliptical and some light lifting. I ate like garbage, didn't do supplements or any of the like and never saw any results. Doing this did help with quitting smoking as jumping on the machine and weezing will make you think three times about having even the one smoke.

I was never a scale watcher, I keep a belt and track by notches. I noticed my greatest gains when I really started putting effort into my weight lifting and again as I started adding some supplements. I currently use a 100% whey from costco, a BCAA powder from a nutrition store along with a rotating selection of pre workout products. My gym, and most around me, have shake bars in them and usually a second one right next store or in the complex. Those are a little more $$ for daily use, but allows you to try some different things without having to commit to an entire bottle of something. At current I am 35, still can pick up 23-25 attractive co-eds in a competitive environment (Arizona State University). My diet is mostly BBQ chicken and fish, lots of fruit and vegetables (still sauteed and seasoned). Easy on the carbs, no sodas and occasional good beers.

It is not a easy road, I see many people start at the gym and not be around after a few weeks, but I also see old guys and gals (70+) that are there constantly and kicking ass. It is easy to be intimidated starting at the gym, but everyone starts somewhere and you have everyone's respect by showing up at all. Get in a routine and stick with it no matter what, I go right after work and my little girl is stoked for the daycare center set up. It is win, win, win. I am in shape, she has fun and hopefully picks it up as a good habit for life and I will hopefully be around for a long time to enjoy it (and fully because I don't tire easily). All aspects of your life will improve as you have more energy, will feel better and just be happier, Mrs will like the energy and stamina, all around good.

Congrats for quitting the smokes. It's hard, but it's worth it!

Best medicine for me was the Zone diet (loosely followed) and the bike.

Cycling is the easiest way to ramp into exercise without hurting something else (back, knees, feet, whatever). You can burn a ton of calories in a short amount of time. I'm an outside person - gym doesn't work well for me. I like to see the scenery. It can also be a group activity, which gives natural interval training. My wife even started riding with me. Bikes are cheap on craigslist.

Get a heart-rate monitor ( I like the Garmin 305). The ability to track my workouts and compare to others was a good motivator.

Food wise, I was amazed at the results with just swapping out breads & potatoes for fruits nuts and vegetables. Lean meat the size of your hand (excluding fingers), fill the rest of the plate with vegetables. I was never into measuring foods.

As the rest of my body falls apart around me (ACL reconstruction, microfracture, herniated disk) I can always bike and swim.