I'm tired of being fat & out of shape

[jp0212]

I posted a thread a while ago titled "Needing Help", for anyone that is looking to become more fit. I have a B.S. in Kinesiology (Exercise Science), and spent a few years as a personal trainer before I decided to go back to school for Construction Management. I used to love helping people, but quickly realized I didn't want that type of profession for the rest of my life. I still really enjoy helping people get in better shape, so I am happy to help anyone out who needs it. I highly advise AGAINST any type of diet such as Keto, Atkins, South Beach, or any other diet plan that restricts your carbohydrate intake to less than 30% of your total. That percentage itself is already considered low carb. When I used to train, I always ran people on a diet that consisted of 40% Protein - 30% Carbs - 30% Fat along with a 500 calorie deficit. People's bodies tend to react differently, which is why the alternative to that was 40% Protein - 40% Carbs - 20% Fat with a 500 calorie deficit. The ONLY way you can dip below 30% carbs safely is to engage in a carb loading diet. That involves eating almost no carbs 5 days of the week, and stacking up and eating almost all carbs the other two days to replenish glycogen stores. The statement that some diets work for some people and others don't is completely false. The diet doesn't work solely because it doesn't get adhered to. Not necessarily out of a lack of motivation, but sometimes people may think they are doing the right thing when they aren't. As a trainer, I had only one single person not get the results they wanted from the macro break down I listed above. She was strictly adhering to it, but losing almost no weight. I had to convince her to see a doctor, as the only way that could be happening is if she had a thyroid issue, which she did. Following this type of plan, you do not starve your body of any necessary macro's so there are no harmful effects to your metabolism or how your body functions. The body can continue to operate using its normal functions of fuel metabolism.

 

Someone stated earlier that Keto tells your body to use fat as fuel rather than carbs (glucose). That is actually false. You are essentialy starving your body, which forces it to start using fat out of desperation to fuel your muscles. The main issue with this is that your brain cannot utilize anything other that glucose as a fuel source, as it is pretty much the only thing that that can pass the blood brain barrier. When your body doesn't have enough glucose coming in, it will resort to pulling from Glycogen stored within your muscle (which is actually meant for muscle energy usage). When that runs out, which it will during Ketosis (Keto) or any other very low carb diet, your body will actually start to break down stored muscle because it can convert that to glucose to fuel the brain. You are also starving your body of a necessary macro nutrient, which causes it to alter your metabolism. That can actually have harmful effects. Generally, on those diets you do lose some fat, but you will also lose a significant amount of muscle as well as large amounts of water that equate to large weight loss. I can elaborate on this more if people would like, but I was hoping to avoid writing a confusing novel.

 

I know this is probably super confusing so I will try to break down how I operate here:

 

At 33 years old, 6'0", 205 lbs and regular exercise I will need 2796 calories to maintain my body weight

Putting myself at 500 calorie deficit that means I need to eat 2296 calories to lose fat and minimize muscle loss

At 40-30-30, that equates to 918 cal protein, 689 cal carbs and 689 cal fat

Protein has 4 cal per gram, Carbs have 4 cal per gram and fat has 9 cal per gram

Taking my macro breakdown that means I need:

918/4=230g of protein per day

689/4=172g of carbs per day

689/9=77g of fat per day

 

I then take each of those "per day" values and divide by 5 given that I eat 5 small meals per day.

Usually you would follow that plan for 3-4 weeks and evaluate how effective it is and adjust as needed.

 

If you want to bulk up, everything above stays true except you will increase your intake by 500 calories and go into 6 meals, mainly because 5 meals will then become way to hard to eat given their size.

 

I realize this is a lot to choke down, so feel free to let me know if clarification is needed.

[Edge]

Volleyball?

[GreyGhost85]

it's a sport too!

[AZkiller]

Jim stopponi

[trphyhntr]

Jim stopponi

plz go.

[CatfishKev]

i was in the same position until i found out i got drawn for a physically demanding late bull hunt. I changed my diet to the Ketogenic diet (thanks Joe Rogan) and it honestly has been life changing so far. With the diet and regular gym time, i went from an out of shape 6'4" 250lbs to 230lbs while losing 10%+ body fat and packing on a lot of muscle in about 3 months time. the diet is low carb/moderate protein/insanely high fat basically. converts your body from running on glucose (sugar) to running on fat. a LOT of high performance athletes are doing it now. I feel better than i have in years and it's really easy to stick with. lots of butter, oil, meats and vegetables.

 

Thanks for the input this is another one I will look into.

[jp0212]

I say again, I STRONGLY recommend avoiding anything like the Keto, Southbeach or Atkins diet. Really anything that drops your carbohydrate intake below 30% of your diet. Another flag is anything that lets you eat all the bacon you want, but won't allow any bread, pasta or potatoes. I you don't want to truly track calories, there are other diet plans out there that do a great job of having you balance your diet without that calorie counting. Body-For-Life and the Zone Diet are the two I most highly recommend. They have both been around for a very long time, and have done a fantastic job of helping people lose weight in a HEALTHY manner, which results in much longer term results.

[kazpilot25]

About 16 weeks ago I was skinny fat and lazy. I decided to start training for a triathlon, and man has it been awesome. It's been a ton of work but the whole swim, bike, run thing is pretty cool. I like the fact that I am getting in pretty good shape, and am increasing endurance like crazy. I can now feel comfortable hiking, swimming, biking any distance if invited to do so. I highly recommend triathlon to everyone here.

[trphyhntr]

i would do it just so i could eat a lot.

[Big Browns]

So, does anyone want to work out togeather this week?

[firstcoueswas80]

Only if you come to marana!

[Jazz]

So this Keto diet. I get how it works, but doesn't the cholesterol just pile up? Isn't that a total killer later on?

[Jerryfish]

Dietary, cholesterol is only a small portion of the cholesterol in your body. Your body needs cholesterol for almost every process, but most importantly hormone production and regulation.

 

For simplicity, lets say your body needs 1000g of cholesterol. If you eat 150g, you body will make 850g of endogenous cholesterol. Eat 100g, your body makes 900g etc. The majority of the cholesterol in a persons body is from the body's own production.

 

I'm sure everyone has heard of LDL (bad) and HDL (good). This HDL/LDL ratio and type (particle size and density too, but I wont get into that here), is dictated by a lot of other factors... genetics, overall health, activity, etc.

 

Most importantly, the main killer with regard to cholesterol is inflammation in response to the cholesterol. Cholesterol itself does not do the damage, but the body's natural responses to bad levels/types of cholesterol can create the arterial blockages, plaques and other issues.

 

With regard to the Keto diet, people will see benefit (if they are coming of the standard western diet), if they eat a blend of healthy fats (Coconut, MCT, Olive Oil etc) in additional to healthy sources of protein and vegetables because this will naturally lead to lower inflammation, lower body fat and higher insulin sensitivity (reduce diabetes). NOTE: Yes you can put you body in ketosis from eating bacon for every meal and lose weight, but this is not ideal for total health.

 

My opinion of the keto diet is that it can be great for correcting a lot of the issues with most peoples diet. It is not perfect for everyone, it is largely not sustainable long term, but it is effective for a large group of individuals.

[pahncho2121]

This is a great thread with a lot of good information. It is great to see people wanting to get healthier. Goes to show how subjective some of this stuff can be though. I was in need of a life style change myself and realized it last August. I didn't follow a diet or go to a gym as I am 40 miles one way to the closest one. Instead my wife and I switched to fresh fruits and home grown vegetables, lots of wild meat and chicken, forced myself to like avocados (now I love them) and exercise 6 days a week with dumbells, and elliptical, step climber, mow the yard with a 68lb pack on, and running 4 miles on the farm roads. Even ran into the heard of mule deer in my avatar running before work one day. I have dropped 72lbs since I started and feel awesome. Just recently started with supplements. I have an Iso Pure protein shake with a banana and a handful of blueberries for breakfast along with coffee and it holds me over till lunch. Just came back from a scouting trip and was shocked at how much more fun it is heading to the "back country" with that much less weight and increasing overall health.

[Huntnchick]

I agree with this to an extent. The better you eat I believe the faster the results and the further you can go. But I would rather eat normal food, just smaller portions, eat healthier options where I can, and exercise as my life, instead of cutting out so much that I want to cheat and give up.

 

Maybe that will change once I see my results in 3 weeks. I just started running every day now and made it to 3 miles today. Tomorrow will be a walk with a child on my back and Friday will be miles of hiking to scout for archery deer.

 

But what everyone has said, their best results have come from cardio with weight lifting. So I will probably add weights to my routine at some point.