Stuff that worked… and stuff that didn't

rogerbosch

Well, let me start by attaching a graph, which represents both my weight and calorie intake from January 1st till now.


See a bigger picture here [url]"http://www.4shared.com/photo/OTjUleSm/weight.html"[/url]

At first there seems to be no relationship between how much I ate and what I weighed, but wait!, there definitely is a correlation.

I'm a 47 years old man, 170 cm and currently weighing 61 kilos with a body fat percentage of around 10 percent. One year ago I was - obviously - 46, weighed 70 kilos with a body fat percentage of 30 percent. I was not taller or shorter then.

With a little bit of effort and science I was able to reach my goal weight of 61 kilos easily and fast. To maintain it, however, is another story. But I have managed so far, with again not too much effort, but with a lot of trials and errors. How? Read on...

Of course, all kinds of factors influence one's weight besides calories, such as type and intensity of exercise, water retention, etc., but these things as well as how much you eat can be easily corrected. Every day I have logged what I ate. When I stepped on the scale in the morning, I tried to adjust my food plan for the day. Did I weigh more than what I had planned for? I ate less (or walked longer outside). Did I weight a lot more one morning? I called it water retention and took care of my sodium and carbs… And no I did not tell myself that it is probably muscle weight! Did I weigh less than what my plan prescribed? I ate more! Sometimes a helluva lot more!

If you look at the diagram above, you'll see something illogical. Over the first three months I weighed averagely 62.4 kilos while I ate 2160 calories. Over the last three months I had upped the calories to an average of 2477 making me weigh 61.2! No big change of activity level there. Just a plain and simple method, called: HAVE WEIGHT GOALS! That's the most important key of success. But don't exaggerate. Don't go too fast. 50 grams a day is reasonable. That's more than a half a pound per week! That's almost twenty kilos a year!
Lost 100 grams or more in a day? Eat more! In this way you'll be able to, over time, eat more and lose more rather than starve yourself and be put on the anorectic waiting list.

Along with having weight goals I have learned from a few trials and errors, which all in all moved that six-pack in the fridge to a six-pack on my abdomen...

A: What didn't work:
1. A 1200 calorie plan. Calculate your BMI and TDEE and - when trying to lose - keep a 10 per cent deficit.
2. MIRACLE PILLS and the sort. Stop dreaming and save your money. I've tried them last year. They DON'T work.
3. SO-CALLED HEALTHY FOODS or CLEAN EATING: organic vegetables, fish oil, avocado's and whatnot… You might as well take a multi-vitamin pill or two. But even those are not essential if you eat 'normal' for the rest.
4. TOO MUCH CARDIO. Yes, you will lose and see direct results. But the weight IS always coming back, and there's nothing you can do about it!
5. OVERTRAINING. No need to go to the gym 5, 6 or 7 times a week. 3 times is plenty, as long as you have a program and stick to it.
6. ISOLATION EXERCISES. They're pretty useless.
7. WORRYING ABOUT NOT LOSING. It's counter effective.
8. STAYING AWAY FROM KFC. There's nothing wrong with junk food now and then. I always go to McDonalds on busy days, having two chicken wraps and a strawberry sundae. I take it easy on the fries and the cola. But it's a fun place for the kid, and I just have fun along!

B. What did work:
1. STRENGTH TRAINING 2 or 3 times a week. Personally, I love the New Rules of Lifting because it never gets boring and focusses on core strength. No isolation exercises.
2. HIGH PROTEIN, NORMAL FAT, LOW CARBS. Works very well for me.
3. WEIGHING YOURSELF ONCE A DAY. Do it at a set time, say after the first bathroom visit in the morning. Adjust your calorie intake according to what your scale tells you.
4. EATING THE SAME EVERY DAY. It's super easy. Once you've found what works for you , stick to it, especially if it's delicious (for me, that would be the chicken curry)! The more people in your home will make it less easy, but just hold ground!
5. A KITCHEN SCALE. Weigh those portions!
6. CALORIE LOGGING and weight logging. Don't skip a day!
7. LONG WALKS, PAINTING THE WALLS, HOUSEWORK… That last one makes the wife happy and keeps you from unhealthy other stuff, like worrying about dieting for example. Come on, be a (house) man! You can do it, too!

C. What might have worked...
1. PROTEIN SHAKES. Love them.
2. CURRY CHICKEN. That's my miracle pill right there.
3. DARK CHOCOLATE OR ICE CREAM. Always boosts my metabolism.
4. RED WINE. 1 glass a day (okay okay, sometimes 2…) Good for stress relief (see point A7)
5. HIIT. I don't do hit anymore since I'm trying to maintain weight, but last year the weight flew off with Insanity. You can't do it for too long, though, because your body gets used to it. But I guess, for a quick fix it's okay.

changejen2013

Thanks for sharing!

pkw58

Thanks for sharing!

I am finding that on maintenance all those long put off chores around the house are getting done. There is always something else to do besides recreational eating!

Bored? Clean out one shelf somewhere in your house, and give away and throw away "stuff".

Still Bored? Go outside and do one chore in the yard or on the patio..

Still Bored? Go regrout something.

And so on...