CaptainMFP Member

I've found the best post-cardio refuel to keep me in control is chocolate milk (and a number of different authorities recommend this). I just make mine with skim milk and Ovaltine (1 tbsp per half cup). How much I drink depends on the workout. Something less intensive (for me that means under an hour in duration) would…

History lesson: Up until about the 1930s, pink was considered masculine and blue was considered feminine. True story.

My wife and I have two small kids, and have lost more than 120 lbs. between us. Oh yes, and our kids like veggies because WE eat them. Yes, our kids get hot dogs, chicken nuggets, and cookies...but in reasonable portions and they are as likely to ask for broccoli as chips because they see how we eat and eat what we eat.…

Research on increasing calories indicates that it is normal for a person to gain up to 8 lbs. during the first month (nearly all water) when they start eating more. The weight then starts to drop off after the metabolism increases which can honestly take up to a month. As per the above comments, you have to give it more…

I've consistently grossed 2200+ calories per day. I'm nearly 67 lbs. down in eleven months. The following pictures represent a change from about 215 lbs. in July (left) to 180 lbs. in February (right). Since the February picture I've lost an additional 7 lbs. while eating around 2400 calories per day (gross) nearly every…

Factually in error. There is starch AND sugars in fruit, and there are sugars in many baked goods. The exact combination varies. In the end, ALL carbs are chains of monosaccharides and these broken down simple sugars are what enter the body. This is not marketing; it's science.

Carbohydrates are all sugar based. By definition, a carb is a molecule composed of carbon, hydrogen, and water, typically in a ratio of two hydrogens per oxygen & carbon. Complex carbs (including fiber) are long chains of simpler carbs (monosaccharide sugars like glucose). As the vast majority of plants store energy in…

My heart goes out to you and your family. My grandfather (who was drafted by the Chicago Bears -- a real athlete in his prime) passed under somewhat similar circumstances about seven years ago, so I know where you're coming from. Let me say, though, that I love your spirit, your attitude, and especially your ticker...it…

I'm 65 lbs. down since last April. Most of that loss (55 lbs.) came from diet control and aerobics at home (biking, running). I purchased a membership to my campus gym in January (am a college prof; at $60 for five months it was cheap) and I'm typically there for 60 - 90 minutes a day 5 days a week. I love having access to…

I wear only my glasses, 'cause I can't see the scale without 'em. Otherwise, I weigh myself in the same condition the nurse first weighed me after my momma brought me into this world. :wink:

I'm with many above who make their hot cereal with water...though I also enter hot cereals as recipes. Sometimes I also use yogurt instead of milk. I nearly always use milk in my protein shakes...but this is entered as a recipe so the casual reader doesn't see the milk. To the OP: I would also give people the benefit of…

Maxed out somewhere between 250 and 260. (I'm 6' even.) Was officially 240 when I started here. My goal is all about a particular body fat percentage, so I expect to ultimately stop trying to lose at around 170 and have a final weight after toning between 170 and 180. (I'm currently 176.)

If it's any consolation for the despondent, we guys lose ours too...though I guess that's a less ambiguously good thing to move away from man-boobs and closer to real pecs. :smile:

Can't say I actually agree. There is actually a lot of evidence that indicates people who have been overweight can't eat the same amount of calories in maintenance as people who naturally maintain a healthy weight. I envision (without fear or regret) logging ad infinitum. "Normal" is a relative term, and I would submit…

In case it isn't here yet. "Well, I've got news for you pal, you ain't leadin' but two things, right now: Jack and sh!+... and Jack left town!" Bruce Campbell, "Army of Darkness"

MFP estimates your daily caloric needs EXCLUDING exercise. You need to provide energy for exercise or you run the risk of slow loss and even possible gain due to water retention. You body me be used to self-induced caloric restriction to the point that you are not feeling hungry even though you need the nutrients. Keep in…

This is really the truth. As long as you're making any change you will see results in time. The less you try to do at once, the easier it is to achieve success at staying on track. (I actually blogged about this very issue in January at…

I've actually loved this. Saves me the trouble of looking down at my watch constantly when I'm trying to keep my HR in a particular range. I can see the down side, but frankly it's been a convenience for me.

My big moment was actually looking at sodium in restaurant food, rather than calories. I watch it closely due to my blood pressure and it is hard for me to eat out for that reason alone. In effect, I eat out very selectively (planning what to get before I arrive at the restaurant) or I eat out as part of a day on which I'm…

"You look different...I think it's the new glasses." (Note, the "new glasses" were several months old; the weight loss was new.)

The scientific research here is unambiguous: people who weigh daily have better track records for losing and keeping weight off than people who weigh less often. HOWEVER, some people are too emotionally invested in the number and find that daily weighing is too emotionally stressful. Weight loss is not strictly linear...in…

I like Kashi and Multigrain Cheerios, but if you like hot cereal I highly recommend Bob's Red Mill Oat Bran Cereal. It takes me back to childhood Cream of Wheat but is much healthier and is rife for mix-ins. I do it 2 - 3 mornings a week (especially on days where I'm running early in the day) and have mixed in wheat germ,…

This is it in black-and-white. Changing eating and fitness habits is about behavioral modification and simple declarations of any kind about changing behavior are rarely universally accurate or binding.

Please be aware the research to support this claim is MINIMAL. The best research (I've seen only 1 actual academic study) made the following conclusions: (1) Forefoot striking produces less chronic injury than heel strike running. (2) Forefoot striking does NOT reduce the risk of severe injury. (3) A change in running gait…

While certain types of pain can be pushed through, you shouldn't mess with the knee. Knee pain really varies as to what it represents. If you are having pain in the joint capsule or in the patellar tendon or ligament (which is at front of the knee above and below), then these pains need to be taken seriously. I've had a…

I did and am not hanging my head. I had a single Hershey's kiss (like I do every day) and I'm still losing weight and improving my health. Cheers!

"Well the first days are the hardest days" -- The Grateful Dead What you are doing (by trying to change your diet, I mean) is behavioral modification. The closer you are to your old behaviors, the harder they are to escape and the easier it is to give in. I know that I came close to quitting on day 3, and after five days…

I may have orchestrated the gift for myself, but my 5yo and I will get to see his mommy and little brother for a belated Valentine's this Friday...we haven't seen them in more than a month since the economy forced her to get a new job in Tennessee...really it's more of a President's Day weekend thing, but I more closely…

Not to sound like I'm defending your friend, but I'm sympathetic to the response in this sense: assuming you have a normal physiology, there is truth that controlling caloric intake will lead to weight loss; but IMPLEMENTING these changes is far harder than many people (particularly in MFP) seem willing to acknowledge.…

For me this is fairly simple. (1) Slipping up or giving in for a day or a meal is not giving up. Slip happens, if you will. No one is 100% perfect 100% of the time. (2) The only way I lose this battle for my health is if I ACTUALLY give up. Since I'm in this for keeps, I can't comprehend giving up. I CAN comprehend picking…