- Eventually we got
to talking about different things and when I told
them that "bland" food is what works for me they
just laughed me off the site. Ha. I'm well aware this
is just me... but I can't even dabble in
the "Trigger" foods. I go off the
wagon. It's like a smoker taking "one puff". Ain't
happenin'.
-
- What's been
incredible however is just how much bad
information is out there on how to "best" lose weight.
All the books, videos, anecdotes on websites all seem
to skip one thing - taking a hard look at who
YOU are. If you don't really analyze what your
own triggers are, what your issue is with food (and
sorry, but if you're 20-30 pounds or more overweight -
you have an issue with food), you're missing the
point. Some people overeat, some people impulse eat,
some people never workout, some people have a sweet
tooth, some people have all of the above, some people
are trying just to tone, some people just want abs,
some people need 2500 calories, some people need 1500
calories, some people are diabetic...you have
to look at what the issue is. Take me for example,
according to most people, everything I do will
lead to failure:
-
- -You have to
eat
breakfast.
Bullshit. I workout before I eat which
sometimes pushes my first meal to
"lunch" time. I'm usually not hungry in the
morning. If I'm not hungry, I don't eat.
That works for me.
-
- -You have to
have 5-6 meals a
day.
Bullshit. I eat twice a day with a snack at
the end of the day. Works for me. Trying to eat a
little meal usually triggers me wanting more and
more and more. Just how my body works.
-
- -White rice is
bad, avoid all white food.
Bullshit.
There's a couple billion skinny people across the
world that would find that funny coming from "Fat
America". Works for us. Fills me up, and is the
staple of my diet.
-
- -Don't eat
right before bed, you'll gain weight while you
sleep.
Bullshit.
Your body doesn't care when you eat, it's what you
take in compared to what you burn out during the
day, period. Sometimes I eat the final portion
of my meal 20 minutes before I go to sleep.
Doesn't matter. The only problem with eating late
is you tend to eat stupid things like Ice Cream or
other munchies.
-
- -Anything over
2.5 pounds a week is
dangerous.
Bullshit. Depends on how big you are. A better
judge is 1 - 1.5% of your body weight a week. And
the first week of any diet/workout will have
a drastic change, but then eventually level out.
But again, if you're 350 pounds that "leveling out"
could be 5 pounds a week for several months. That's
not dangerous, 350 pounds is.
-
- -You should
never cut out the foods you
love.
Bullshit. I should. Seriously, tell an alcoholic to
have just one glass of wine every week.
Sounds insane right? I can't go to McDonalds
without not only overeating, but the struggle that
would ensue the following few days would be torture
as I try to get that "feeling" back. I, can't,
eat, that, shit. Period.
-
- -You should
take one day a week and eat whatever you want, it
will spike your body during the rest of the week to
lose weight (seriously, I read this).
Bullshit.
That would destroy me. That would end the diet for
me. Certain body-types can do this but wow, just
wow this is wrong for me.
-
- -Don't weigh
yourself every day, just once a week.
Bullshit. If
you weigh yourself at the same time, it's a great
way to understand how your body works. You just
have to be prepared for plateaus, and never take it
too seriously. What I did was boldface my weekly
weigh-ins so if I gained weight early in the week,
I could be more focused on trying to hit the 2.5
pounds per week goal, which for me is
perfect.
-
- -Calorie
deprivation under 1500 calories will make your body
store fat, and you'll gain weight.
Bullshit.
Look at my grid. Everyone is different. Some people
live fine on under 1000 calories a day.
Granted, they're under 4 foot tall and weigh 80
pounds, but you have to look at who you are. For my
size and physical activity level, I can
maintain my weight eating around 1800-2000
calories. 2500 calories is WAY TOO MUCH
for me. I sit on my ass all day. So to lose
weight I eat around 1200 calories a day and
workout. It works. If you're 350 pounds, you
would be calorically deprived at under 1500
calories. You could do 2500 calories a day and walk
to your friggin' CAR and lose weight.
-
- -Not eating all
day is a sign of an eating disorder.
Bullshit.
The majority of the planet partakes in fasts and
they don't have eating disorders. It could
be a sign of an eating disorder. Could also be a
sign that you're homeless - so what's your point?
Several people fast one day a week. Good for them.
I don't. Would drive me crazy. But
(although I didn't do it this time), I've
always said a water fast the first day of
your diet/workout routine tends to reconnect your
mind and body as to just what "hunger" is.
Seriously - the day after a fast, you can eat just
a few bites and you feel it... and realize
just how much food you need to no longer be hungry.
So many people have never really understood what
"hunger" is. And I think it's a good idea for
everyone to fast for a day at least once in their
life so they can really connect with their own
body.
-
- -You have to do
weights as well as cardio or you'll be burning
muscle.
Bullshit. I do push-ups and sit-ups and thanks to
my trusty body-fat scale, and the fact that my arms
and pecs are a lot bigger, I know I'm not
burning muscle. For me focusing on cardio first to
get the bulk of the weight off is easier. It gets
too confusing for me when you add weights in. I'll
do weights later. Just how my mind/body
works.
-
- -To lose weight
you have to burn "X" amount when you
workout.
Bullshit. And this is a big one. If you look at my
workout, I'm burning an average of 228 calories a
day and in fact recently have gone down to 24
minutes on the bike! So how the fuck could
I ever lose weight? It's the simplest rule
that works for everyone: get to your target
heart-rate (google it) for at least 20 minutes a
day. End, of, story. Because my reps of push-ups
and sit-ups have gotten so high, I was able to
actually do LESS time on the bike since
I do them all together (every 5 minutes
I jump off the bike and do a rep). Doing this
before you eat increases your metabolism all
day. That's it. Over-exercising is the death-knell
for me as I hate doing it as it is
already.
-
- Now, if you're
anorexic or bulimic or have long side-burns or stinky
feet - everything I just wrote may be wrong...for
you. It's something you just have to figure out for
yourself. Some people get so hungry without breakfast
they pig out all day. Some people can have a small bag
of potato chips and be fine. Some people can have a
piece of desert - and it actually helps them (fuck
all of you). Some people weigh themselves
everyday and become so obsessed that they then have a
whole host of other issues (like videotaping yourself
on the toilet Adam-ha). Some people have to eat small
meals throughout the day. Some people can literally
"take the stairs" instead of the elevator and lose the
weight they want, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera. You
are unique! Embrace it, and find your answers
inward.
-
- Bottom line is,
I don't know DICK on how to help you lose weight
and neither does anyone else. You have to figure out
your issue/issues and go from there. But universally,
all "fad" diets aside, eat less calories than you
do now, and burn more calories than you do now, and
your body will react accordingly. Eat less, move more.
I contend that any other "tricks" or "shortcuts" to
that will end up not working, but seriously that could
just be my bias. And also, the more of the "eating
issues" you have, the more serious you have to treat
this. My uncle told me one time, "What do you mean you
can't eat that? Just kick the soccer ball around."
Heh. That's his experience, but he doesn't have any
issues with food. Never has. If he wanted to lose
weight? He would literally kick the soccer ball around
5 minutes longer than he usually does and would be
fine. For people like me however, ya gotta be a
tiny bit more serious about it. :-)
-
- So there ya go.
I'm moving my initial goal of 155 to 150 as it's clear
that it's still necessary. My BMI is still over 23 so
I'm on the high end of "normal" (18.5-24.9) and at 150
I'll be 21.8. Pretty dead on for my height (5' 9.5").
Then I'll look into a bench press to start weights.
I'm also gonna give "abs" 30 days. And that's it. I
don't think I can genetically "get" abs, but
I'll give it one shot before I get too old. I'll
do the stupid diet to get my body-fat to 5-6% (it'll
be around 13% when I hit 150) and see if it works. If
it doesn't, then fuck it. I think it's stupid as
hell and there's just no reason for a man with a
body-type like mine to ever be 5-6% body fat. It's all
for vanity and none of those abs are core abs anyway -
it's all surface shit to look good.
-
- I call it stupid,
but I'm still gonna try it once. HAHA.
-
- Adam
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