Intense workouts to outrun the fork

13

Replies

  • lalalacroix
    lalalacroix Posts: 834 Member
    I burn quite a few calories each week in exercise. Yesterday my calorie burn was over 1,700 (hiking over 13 miles, with mountain inclines, wearing a pack). I can afford to have high calorie meals during the week, and I do. But the majority of my calories come from vegetables, fruit and grains. I could definitely fit in a couple nights of pizza and beer if I wanted.

    Like others said, finding the balance is key. Even with my high activity, I couldn't eat high calorie burgers and pizza every night and still lose weight, unless I switched to omad and then it probably would work. It's about the balance.
  • NorthCascades
    NorthCascades Posts: 10,970 Member
    sijomial wrote: »
    Don't really understand why people conflate a big diet with a bad diet.....

    That's the best thing I was going to say. Why do people get all moralistic about a "bad diet" whenever this comes up? A "bad diet" is about quality but quantity.
  • NorthCascades
    NorthCascades Posts: 10,970 Member
    People training for something eat more to fuel increases in fitness.
  • Danp
    Danp Posts: 1,561 Member
    Danp wrote: »
    Oh and in addition, burning 100,000cal per year is equivalent of approx 2000cals per week which is easily achievable.

    In order to exercise your way out of a 500cal/d surplus and achieve a 1lb per week loss would require burning 364,000 calories per year. 3.5x the activity you're currently undertaking.

    #perspective

    I only mentioned cycling, because I can measure the calories I burn cycling with a maximum of 5% error. I spend the winter skiing cross country. I hike a lot. Don't worry about me not getting enough activity. I do it because it's fun and rewarding, see the picture above. It's like that song by The Cults, I Really Wanna be Outside.

    #perspective

    Firstly, my comments weren't specifically directed at you or the way you're doing things. Just speaking to the general idea of being able to out exercise the extra calories that would constitute a diet which had caused weight gain.

    Secondly, I am ABSOLUTELY green with envy. That vista is simply stunning and while cycling around the beaches of southern Sydney isn't bad by any stretch its not a patch on that. Just WOW!
  • laurenhugs23
    laurenhugs23 Posts: 153 Member
    While I was losing weight I kept my indulgences to a minimum, but if I had a special event I would do my best to do OMAD, for me this meant over compensating with caffeinated beverages. If I did go way over I would feel less hungry the next day and eat under my calorie goal by a few hundred. My weekly calorie goal would always even out. Focusing on the weekly calories versus day to day is what works for me. Now that I am in maintenance I don't eat back my exercise calories Monday through Thursday, and Fri Sat Sun I usually go over by a few hundred. So far it's worked out for me, but I don't exercise that much. I run a mile a couple times a week, but it's mostly walking. When my weight starts to trend down I eat more.
  • jackalita
    jackalita Posts: 29 Member
    melmoldy wrote: »
    Just put the effin fork down. Smh.

    Ummmm did you read my whole post? Lol I am talking about a once a week night out. Not binge eating or even going over calories every day. I'm still down about 40 lbs total, so I know that a calorie deficit is needed. Just trying to see what is "possible" and others experience of adding more exercise to offset a cheat night.
  • CSARdiver
    CSARdiver Posts: 6,257 Member
    I am in Indiana, and the Amish are a perfect example of people who, while not running per se, are most certainly out-pitchforking the fork. Most of them, men and women, are thin and muscular, and while you will see one or two occasionally who are pleasantly plump, they are nowhere near the grotesque levels of obesity one so commonly sees in an Indiana [or insert most states except Colorado here] Walmart.

    Let me assure you, they eat all the food, and all the fat and sugar, with occasional fast food, Chinese buffet and pizza splurges, but they are mostly cooking from scratch and eating a very large amount of veg.

    I got 6 hours of sustained hard core gardening--digging, flipping compost, splitting perennials, hauling crap around the yard) in on Saturday and Sunday, which pushes my calorie limit above 3000 in a cut (I am a 5'6" female working on losing 5 lbs from 150). Every May and June the weight just magically melts off *IF* I can spend an appropriate amount of time working outside and head all the time-sucks off at the pass so I can play in the dirt. But it gets back to what some of the bikers and hikers are saying on here--it needs to be long-term, sustainable, enjoyable, challenging activity that you can stick with.

    I was putting together a post on just how little activity needs to be done to sustain life today and using the Amish as a comparative lifestyle, estimating 8-10 hours of physical labor/day and 20k steps/day.

    We have evolved so rapidly over that past century that it is difficult to grasp just how easy we in the Western world have it to the point we may need to deliberately insert inefficiencies into our lives.
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 24,706 Member
    CSARdiver wrote: »
    I am in Indiana, and the Amish are a perfect example of people who, while not running per se, are most certainly out-pitchforking the fork. Most of them, men and women, are thin and muscular, and while you will see one or two occasionally who are pleasantly plump, they are nowhere near the grotesque levels of obesity one so commonly sees in an Indiana [or insert most states except Colorado here] Walmart.

    Let me assure you, they eat all the food, and all the fat and sugar, with occasional fast food, Chinese buffet and pizza splurges, but they are mostly cooking from scratch and eating a very large amount of veg.

    I got 6 hours of sustained hard core gardening--digging, flipping compost, splitting perennials, hauling crap around the yard) in on Saturday and Sunday, which pushes my calorie limit above 3000 in a cut (I am a 5'6" female working on losing 5 lbs from 150). Every May and June the weight just magically melts off *IF* I can spend an appropriate amount of time working outside and head all the time-sucks off at the pass so I can play in the dirt. But it gets back to what some of the bikers and hikers are saying on here--it needs to be long-term, sustainable, enjoyable, challenging activity that you can stick with.

    I was putting together a post on just how little activity needs to be done to sustain life today and using the Amish as a comparative lifestyle, estimating 8-10 hours of physical labor/day and 20k steps/day.

    We have evolved so rapidly over that past century that it is difficult to grasp just how easy we in the Western world have it to the point we may need to deliberately insert inefficiencies into our lives.

    I am nothing if not the Queen of Inefficiency, considering that if I need a new scarf, step 1 is:

    1) Buy a large, demanding, and high-maintenance rabbit.

    Or if I want a beer:

    1) Procure a hops vine.

    :D

    Well yes ... life inefficiency can increase weightloss efficiency. :smiley:

    Take, for example, what I'm about to do ...

    I've got a bunch of stuff to print.
    My plan is to print the things one at a time and hike down to the photocopier and back for each one. Lots of steps! :)

    I do something similar with laundry and housekeeping. Get up at each commercial break and do one thing. I could carry all the laundry into the dressing room in one go, but that would reduce the number of steps. Instead I spend many of my commercial breaks walking back and forth in the house ... unless, of course, I'm in a rush and need to get things done efficiently.
  • NorthCascades
    NorthCascades Posts: 10,970 Member
    CSARdiver wrote: »
    I am in Indiana, and the Amish are a perfect example of people who, while not running per se, are most certainly out-pitchforking the fork. Most of them, men and women, are thin and muscular, and while you will see one or two occasionally who are pleasantly plump, they are nowhere near the grotesque levels of obesity one so commonly sees in an Indiana [or insert most states except Colorado here] Walmart.

    Let me assure you, they eat all the food, and all the fat and sugar, with occasional fast food, Chinese buffet and pizza splurges, but they are mostly cooking from scratch and eating a very large amount of veg.

    I got 6 hours of sustained hard core gardening--digging, flipping compost, splitting perennials, hauling crap around the yard) in on Saturday and Sunday, which pushes my calorie limit above 3000 in a cut (I am a 5'6" female working on losing 5 lbs from 150). Every May and June the weight just magically melts off *IF* I can spend an appropriate amount of time working outside and head all the time-sucks off at the pass so I can play in the dirt. But it gets back to what some of the bikers and hikers are saying on here--it needs to be long-term, sustainable, enjoyable, challenging activity that you can stick with.

    I was putting together a post on just how little activity needs to be done to sustain life today and using the Amish as a comparative lifestyle, estimating 8-10 hours of physical labor/day and 20k steps/day.

    We have evolved so rapidly over that past century that it is difficult to grasp just how easy we in the Western world have it to the point we may need to deliberately insert inefficiencies into our lives.

    Rules are interesting things, and exceptions too. This ∆ is right 99% of the time. Exception to prove the rule: A car gets 30 miles to the gallon, with a gallon being the energy equivalent of 36,000 calories. A road bike gets 10 to 15 miles to the taco.

    (You're talking about a slightly different thing, it's more efficient for people to outsource their inefficiency, turning money into a way to avoid burning calories.)
  • koalathebear
    koalathebear Posts: 236 Member
    I'm still heading towards my goal weight - 22kg lost so far, another 14 or so to go. I have the occasional meals out, I still eat cake, biscuits, chocolate, ice cream etc but in moderation. I plan ahead:
    - if I know I'm going to eat out/have something high in calories, I make sure I don't eat too much the days before and after.
    - I offset a big chunk of the extra calories with exercise, whether time on the elliptical or walking my dogs. I find that a decent walk with my dogs (I have three), is usually good for offsetting snacks given that half an hour at a jog can burn 100-200 calories and depending on how long or far I walk - I can burn around 400 calories walking. I burn more on the elliptical
    - I bank and plan ahead of time. I will check the menu before hand to figure out what I should eat within that day's calorie budget. If I'm going out, I might have a much smaller breakfast or lunch so that I can eat more at dinner.

    I know this might not work for everyone but it's working for me thusfar and I find that the fitness/weight loss journey has been enjoyable rather than a chore because I am still able to eat normal food. I also still bake biscuits because I love baking. I only have a little bit of my baking and give the rest away to friends, family and colleagues but it means I can still enjoy the sweets I love albeit in moderation.
  • Sunshine_And_Sand
    Sunshine_And_Sand Posts: 1,320 Member
    When I was in high school and college, I thought I was outrunning the fork. I ate candy or ice cream for breakfast frequently. I almost always had cheese and crackers, oranges, and a HUGE portion of dry frosted mini wheats (that I always shared with my friends) for lunch, ate potato chips for snack on afternoons when I was actually home, and then whatever my mom cooked for dinner, or fast food if I was out with my friends. I played sports as well as participated in band (a lot of marching) and had aerobics videos (I loved tae-bo) I did 4-5 times a week and also went to the gym and used the cardio equipment plus did their aerobics classes. In college I didn't play sports or do band but did all the other things plus was at a walking campus so a lot more non-exercise activity than before. I thought I was out-exercising my diet but looking back, maybe not. I was young and had a higher metabolism plus I never tracked so may not have been eating as much as I thought...
    Now that I'm pushing 40 and have two kids whose activities are a higher priority than mine, well you said you only wanted to hear about situations where it worked...
  • zeejane4
    zeejane4 Posts: 230 Member
    edited May 2019
    I am in Indiana, and the Amish are a perfect example of people who, while not running per se, are most certainly out-pitchforking the fork. Most of them, men and women, are thin and muscular, and while you will see one or two occasionally who are pleasantly plump, they are nowhere near the grotesque levels of obesity one so commonly sees in an Indiana [or insert most states except Colorado here] Walmart.

    Let me assure you, they eat all the food, and all the fat and sugar, with occasional fast food, Chinese buffet and pizza splurges, but they are mostly cooking from scratch and eating a very large amount of veg.

    I got 6 hours of sustained hard core gardening--digging, flipping compost, splitting perennials, hauling crap around the yard) in on Saturday and Sunday, which pushes my calorie limit above 3000 in a cut (I am a 5'6" female working on losing 5 lbs from 150). Every May and June the weight just magically melts off *IF* I can spend an appropriate amount of time working outside and head all the time-sucks off at the pass so I can play in the dirt. But it gets back to what some of the bikers and hikers are saying on here--it needs to be long-term, sustainable, enjoyable, challenging activity that you can stick with.

    I think it's still going to vary quite a bit, from individual to individual, even in a setting like that. We spent some time in the Shipshewana area last year and one thing that stood out to me and the others in my group was how overweight so many of the Amish we were around were. Most of the women were overweight, as well as the older men. And it wasn't just 'pleasantly plump'. We ate at a cafe and there was a younger woman who was pushing morbidly obese-they had to get her a special bench at the restaurant. The children were all thin, but the adults looked similar to what I see every day around me.
  • lkpducky
    lkpducky Posts: 16,635 Member
    [quote="Danp;c-43689775"So, how long (time wise) was that 950cal ride?

    Is was two rides, about 70 minutes total. I wanted a little more when I got home. Here's a picture from the first.

    46869668195_dfa039edaa_o_d.jpg[/quote]

    Stunning photograph, not just from the scenery but from the positioning of the bike relative to the background.

    We now return you to the regular thread topic.