John's OMAD journey
Replies
-
You're great motivation to all of us john!1
-
Saturday weigh-in results: 1.5 lbs lost this week, 19.75 total lbs lost in 6 weeks. Thought I'd hit that "magic 20" this week, but next week is okay too.
I've been doing elliptical and/or walking most days a week, started to add back bodyweight exercises (pushups, planks, etc.) -- mindful of Joe's admonition not to exercise too hard to prevent cortisol levels from climbing. We'll see how this works. A couple of weeks ago on elliptical I was letting my heart rate get too high, and since I've been monitoring bpm on a fitbit and keeping it under 140 bpm (max cardio rate for my age), things have been much better. I was getting ravenous hunger pangs again when I was going too hard. I learned years ago that heart rates above target bpm were not good for you, these levels are actually stress (learned this was all the way back in the big '80's!), so I just have to remember what I'm supposed to know already. I'm gauging whether I'm over-exercising by how I sleep and how I experience hunger, and of course the Fitbit gives me immediate feedback. If everything stays calm, that's good! "Synchronicity and Stability"
Link to Video: OMAD Revolution "Less Exercise = More Weight Loss"
Started reading Dr. Jason Fung's book "The Obesity Code", so far it's quite interesting. Learnings so far: weight gain isn't really due to calories in exceeding calories out (that's like telling an alcoholic he's that way because he drinks too much alcohol . . . accurate but spectacularly unhelpful). Weight gain / loss, indeed all feelings of hunger/satiety, are driven by hormones, and the chief of these are insulin and cortisol. I know he's a proponent of fasting as the proper way to control weight, so looking forward to him tying it all together.
Link to Book: The Obesity Code
Lastly, here's the sort of data the Fitbit gives me. From yesterday, the elliptical at lunchtime and a sunset walk with wifey later in the day:
2 -
Saturday weigh-in results: 1.5 lbs lost this week, 19.75 total lbs lost in 6 weeks. Thought I'd hit that "magic 20" this week, but next week is okay too.
I've been doing elliptical and/or walking most days a week, started to add back bodyweight exercises (pushups, planks, etc.) -- mindful of Joe's admonition not to exercise too hard to prevent cortisol levels from climbing. We'll see how this works. A couple of weeks ago on elliptical I was letting my heart rate get too high, and since I've been monitoring bpm on a fitbit and keeping it under 140 bpm (max cardio rate for my age), things have been much better. I was getting ravenous hunger pangs again when I was going too hard. I learned years ago that heart rates above target bpm were not good for you, these levels are actually stress (learned this was all the way back in the big '80's!), so I just have to remember what I'm supposed to know already. I'm gauging whether I'm over-exercising by how I sleep and how I experience hunger, and of course the Fitbit gives me immediate feedback. If everything stays calm, that's good! "Synchronicity and Stability"
Link to Video: OMAD Revolution "Less Exercise = More Weight Loss"
Started reading Dr. Jason Fung's book "The Obesity Code", so far it's quite interesting. Learnings so far: weight gain isn't really due to calories in exceeding calories out (that's like telling an alcoholic he's that way because he drinks too much alcohol . . . accurate but spectacularly unhelpful). Weight gain / loss, indeed all feelings of hunger/satiety, are driven by hormones, and the chief of these are insulin and cortisol. I know he's a proponent of fasting as the proper way to control weight, so looking forward to him tying it all together.
Link to Book: The Obesity Code
Lastly, here's the sort of data the Fitbit gives me. From yesterday, the elliptical at lunchtime and a sunset walk with wifey later in the day:
That's so interesting. So when you kept your heart rate higher on the elliptical, you were burning less fat than when you maintained a lower heart rate during your walk?0 -
I'm afraid to start working out because I don't want to gain, I'm not even walking
0 -
There's a lot to be said about "fat burning" vs. "cardio" zones, and I'm neither an expert nor very experienced at providing fitness advice for others, but I wouldn't take the names of the zones that literally. Suffice to say that "fat burningzone" is 50 to 70% of max heart rate, and 70-85% of max heart rate is the "cardio zone". Anything above cardio zone is cortisol-producing stress, and counter-productive. A fit person can train in this zone doing intervals, but that's out of the scope of what we are trying to achieve here.That's so interesting. So when you kept your heart rate higher on the elliptical, you were burning less fat than when you maintained a lower heart rate during your walk?
I would absolutely follow Joe's recommendations on exercise. A bit of background on me, I had been doing cardio kickboxing for over a year, and those sort of intervals did quite a bit of good for my heart, but ZERO good for my weight. Didn't lose anything. It was also ruining my knees and shoulders. But my resting heart rate dropped from the mid 60's to the mid 50's, and I'm trying to hold on to those cardio gains while I'm following OMAD as Joe defines it as closely as I can.
1 -
I would follow Joe's advice on exercise as he lays out in his videos. As someone here shared "the gym is for fitness, and the kitchen is for weight loss".brendagaudette wrote: »I'm afraid to start working out because I don't want to gain, I'm not even walking
Whatever you do, or don't do, keep it relaxing and stay relaxed about it. This is for life. Remember, stress produces cortisol, and that's a weight-gain hormone.
2 -
Back on the zones, it's a continuum, right? Both benefit the heart & circulatory system, both burn fat, to varying degrees. But the fitness industry had to hype it up somehow so they could sell more stuff . . .
Everything I know about heart rate zones I learned from reading this guy:
Covert Bailey The Ultimate Fit or Fat1 -
There's a lot to be said about "fat burning" vs. "cardio" zones, and I'm neither an expert nor very experienced at providing fitness advice for others, but I wouldn't take the names of the zones that literally. Suffice to say that "fat burningzone" is 50 to 70% of max heart rate, and 70-85% of max heart rate is the "cardio zone". Anything above cardio zone is cortisol-producing stress, and counter-productive. A fit person can train in this zone doing intervals, but that's out of the scope of what we are trying to achieve here.That's so interesting. So when you kept your heart rate higher on the elliptical, you were burning less fat than when you maintained a lower heart rate during your walk?
I would absolutely follow Joe's recommendations on exercise. A bit of background on me, I had been doing cardio kickboxing for over a year, and those sort of intervals did quite a bit of good for my heart, but ZERO good for my weight. Didn't lose anything. It was also ruining my knees and shoulders. But my resting heart rate dropped from the mid 60's to the mid 50's, and I'm trying to hold on to those cardio gains while I'm following OMAD as Joe defines it as closely as I can.
You probably did gain muscle and lost fat so you might not have seen the weight loss.0 -
Tougher week! Gained 0.5 pound, for total weight loss of 19.25 lbs since 12/30/17. Was quite tired and had low energy most of this week, unlike the prior weeks. For now, I'm assuming this is just a 'thing' and will push through it.
Broke the fast yesterday, co-workers wanted to go out for lunch and had been planning this a while, so I went along. Thought I would get a simple salad, but this was a very 'country' place that had nothing of the sort, fried catfish, mac n cheese, mustard greens, fried okra, etc. It was good though. But I'm a night eater, and I wasn't able to make the lunch meal my OMAD. So, yesterday was TMAD?
Almost finished with Fung's book "The Obesity Code", I've really been enjoying this book. Lots of fact-based encouragement to support what we are doing.2 -
Tougher week! Gained 0.5 pound, for total weight loss of 19.25 lbs since 12/30/17. Was quite tired and had low energy most of this week, unlike the prior weeks. For now, I'm assuming this is just a 'thing' and will push through it.
Broke the fast yesterday, co-workers wanted to go out for lunch and had been planning this a while, so I went along. Thought I would get a simple salad, but this was a very 'country' place that had nothing of the sort, fried catfish, mac n cheese, mustard greens, fried okra, etc. It was good though. But I'm a night eater, and I wasn't able to make the lunch meal my OMAD. So, yesterday was TMAD?
Almost finished with Fung's book "The Obesity Code", I've really been enjoying this book. Lots of fact-based encouragement to support what we are doing.
Sometimes things like that interrupt us but we can get back at it. I had a work thing last
Tuesday with people visiting and pretty much the same scenario as you. Good luck!2 -
TMAD was better than doing 3MAD or 4MAD
1 -
You're doing so well. Great to see1
-
1
-
Down 5 lbs this week after last week's 'blah' week! Total weight loss is 24.3 lbs over the past 8 weeks.
No severe adjustments to the plan, just concentrated on getting back on track, continuing my elliptical workouts and walking. The only change I made may have been mental . . . to try to calm myself before meals, slow down, and eat unhurried. Other than that, stayed the course. Daily weigh ins were about the same until . . BAM! Thursday shed 3.25 lbs in one day. Weight loss is weird, y'all!
All these weights are taken on a balance-beam type body weight scale, so I think they're accurate:
4 -
You are doing really well! Are you counting calories? How many a day are you eating you think?0
-
Still happy to report . . . no clue! Other than being 'mindful' of carbohydrates (but not avoiding them), I just try to eat a balanced meal. For me, this is important. If I start counting calories (or even grams of macronutrients), my experience is that I quickly become frustrated and bored with the whole thing. It's quite unnatural for me, so I don't do it.Are you counting calories? How many a day are you eating you think?
Now tonight I attended a wedding, and I didn't watch it much at all . . . . life, right?
1 -
24.3 LBs in 8 weeks is Awesome!!! I don't count calories either and just watch my carbs....Keep up the good work
1 -
You are doing GREAT!!!0
-
Just re-reading some of your comments about exercise. That's so interesting what you wrote about exercise not being the best way to lose weight especially if it raised cortisol, the stress hormone. Sometimes it's better just to have an extra hour of sleep. => less stress =>less cortisol => less appetite => less fat accumulation => less weight.0
-
Just re-reading some of your comments about exercise. That's so interesting what you wrote about exercise not being the best way to lose weight especially if it raised cortisol, the stress hormone. Sometimes it's better just to have an extra hour of sleep. => less stress =>less cortisol => less appetite => less fat accumulation => less weight.
what I do know is that if I concentrate on exercise, I can eat my way to nix all the benefits of the most intense exercise. The kitchen is for weight loss, the gym is for fitness.0 -
If we gain muscle from exercise, we might not lose weight, but our % body fat is improving so that is progress. I imagine someone exercising could either not eat all the cals back, break even, or eat way more than the exercise based on the individual.
I think we can lose weight due to deficits and also due to other factors. Nothing can stop weight loss due to a deficit or we are creating energy out of no-where. I do believe exercise can effect what a deficit is (could increase metabolism and help or could cause us to eat more than the deficit back or both). Exercise acting on cortisol would be effecting weight loss due to other factors than a deficit (average deficit for the day and not instantaneous deficits).0 -
Down 2.75 lbs this week, total weight loss is 27 lbs over the past 9 weeks. SW was 237.75, CW is 210.75 lbs.
Still feel like I'm learning, but feeling more in control. Still not counting calories, just eating in a 2-4 hour window, trying to eat 'healthy', carb conscious but not low carb, exercising regularly but not intensely, and reaching pleasantly full but not stuffing myself.
You can see that I'm still weighing daily because I find it interesting. Even in this past week you'll see my weight swing up and down, not entirely sure what causes that, but it's there.
I continue to be amazed by OMAD. Nothing I have ever tried over the past 25 years has been this effective or, for that matter, relatively easy to insert into my lifestyle. And thank you all for your posts and discussions, I continue to learn from you all and it helps my motivation.
4 -
A 2.75 LB loss is Awesome, keep up the great work 1
-
Great job!1
-
Those numbers and the graph you posted are so motivating I would imagine
1 -
That is awesome! You must be so proud!1
-
For this week, 1.5 lb gain, for a total weight loss of 25.5 since Dec 30.
Kind of in a weird couple of weeks, weight is fluctuating up and down, although looking at the trend it, okay, I guess? But strictly by the numbers I show a 1.5 lb gain this week (last Saturday was the low point). Oh well, keep up the discipline. I show a 1.9 lb/wk loss trendline after the initial week's loss, and I should be quite happy with that.
I was extra tired this week, not sure exactly why, but the pollen has started kicking up (oak pollen first), and that always is a challenging time for me. My wife and my son have been under the weather this week, maybe that's all it is. It's always tougher for me to be disciplined in the evenings with healthy eating when I'm tired.
1 -
Not feeling well is my hardest times also. I've also had a lot of allergies this last week and started taking claritin which has helped a lot. Do you do splurge days that correlate with the weight fluctuations? If not, I would bet your holding some water due to allergies.1
This discussion has been closed.