Gradually approaching 40, time to reassess.

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procrox
procrox Posts: 38 Member
edited September 2016 in Introduce Yourself
Hi all I'm Tom, living in London, UK.
I'll soon be turning 39, and the physique I had in my late 20s has clearly left me, time to reassess.

I used to eat and drink however much I liked with my weight always hovered around 60kg (I'm just 5'7" / 170cm),
but in the last ten years I guess my hormone levels and metabolism have changed as several months ago I stepped on the scales and saw I was 72kg and almost 20% body fat. Since that reality check, I'm determined to put my diet in check somewhat and get back to the low 60kg's and see if I can even get down to around 12% body fat.

Being a bit of a geek I'm keeping daily tabs on my progress (https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1-J16nnYrWTlr651vPgZUz7_ZVnTRamjpIQAWiTnWs7k/edit?usp=sharing) as I find it helps my motivation when I can see the natural cycling of weight loss, it helps me keep on track even when there's no improvement in weight that day.

My diary is open, so feel free to friend me if you have similar goals!

All the best!

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  • MonaRenton
    MonaRenton Posts: 6 Member
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    Add me if u like
  • procrox
    procrox Posts: 38 Member
    edited November 2016
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    Almost two months in, down to 63kg and will probably continue at this calorie limit for another month (61kg?) before switching up to a maintenance level.

    My scales say I have dropped to about 16% body fat, which I'm tempted to trust given abs are making an appearance again.

    Pretty happy with that!
  • steveglloyd73
    steveglloyd73 Posts: 16 Member
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    Hi

    Would love to know how you have managed that % Tom I have lost a stone since Jan but the body fat % is eluding me somewhat, my diet is good and I am exercising 4 times a week. Any tips would be greatly received.

    Good luck

    Steve
  • procrox
    procrox Posts: 38 Member
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    Hi Steve!
    I dont pretend to know what Im doing, but what has worked for me is;

    A) cutting alcohol out as much as possible,
    B) using a pretty punishing calorie limit,
    C) cardio training with a HRM (low exertion for long periods),
    D) strength training

    None of these in isolation would probably have much effect, but put together on top of your already very good diet may work for you too?

    'A', Personally working in the City I find this really hard to do, and I was probably on the verge of becoming dependent on alcohol.
    'B' has been tough too, some days I had crushing headaches as I struggled to manage water intake and spreading intake of nutrients over the day and even finding a level I could tolerate whilst still having energy to work and play. I found I got _really_ cranky and had a horrible short temper if I wasnt taking in enough of the right food. Eventually found a great spreadsheet which helped me set a sensible calorie and nutrient level to aim for, I can probably share a link if you're interested.
    'C', I love my heart rate monitor! I think everyone should do cardio with one. I use Polar Beat and target low-mid heart rate levels for long durations as supposedly this kind of aerobic level of exercise is good for burning fat.
    'D', Adding a bit of muscle so I'd burn more calories even at rest, and also to attempt to stop losing muscle mass as weight loss happened due to the pretty low target calorie goal. Nothing special, just a few weighted squats, dumbbells, push-ups and a pull up bar in a door frame. I'm too cheap to pay for gym membership ;)

    Finally, having a real life buddy with similar goals to keep you in check is good, as one surprising thing I've found is that most friends/family/colleagues are horrendously unsupportive if you mention you're trying to lose weight?!

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