MgoFitness - You're Either Getting Better, or You're Getting Worse

I bike to work and home (about 5 miles each way) every day that the roads are dry. This leads me to somewhat of a seasonal boom-and-bust in my fitness, as I can't bike as often in the winter, but gives me enough exercise to eat pretty much whatever I want. And it only takes about five minutes longer than driving back and forth to work, so it's like a free workout time-wise.

MGoDrinking.  This has already helped.  I have a loooooooong way to go.  But, I am on the way.  Long way before I can start running (knees, feet, back, lung capacity, and love for pain are just not there). 

I like to pick things up and put them back down. Better with age.

I've dropped over 20 pounds since January without meaning to. I didn't need to lose any weight. Started counting calories to figure out why and turns out was only eating around 1200 calories a day. I don't understand why I wasn't hungry. I did the same thing for a year in undergrad and my parents got very concerned about my health.

My goal last year was to work out every day.  I accomplished that . This year is to workout every day and mediate everyday... so far on goal.  Turning 50 in November and my goal is to be in the best shape of my life then.  Might be 51, but will do it.  If I miss a workout then I have to make up later by doing a double (or a triple).   Last year paid attention mostly to exercise, this year adding in diet more seriously.

 

Weights: = 1 workout

Chest, Back, Arms, Legs, Abs, Upper body, Pump (all body)

 

Cardio = 1 workout 

30 min: run, stadium stairs, (will add swimming back on when my ass is in better shape)

45 min: walk, bike (outside or recumbent) , rollerblade, kayak, stairmaster, treadmill inclined, etc.

 

Diet:

Protien drinks regularly, no carbs 2 hours before bed, grocery shop and NO fastfood, pack my lunch every day.

 

Meditation = 20 minutes

 

Ultimately, likely next year, will start scheduling tri-athalons. 

 

GOOD LUCK EVERYONE!

 

I used to be really disciplined before I had kids. Once the kids arrived, my schedule was a slave to theirs. Now that they're older, I'm pushing myself to go to the gym every other day, and walk on the days that I don't go. But it's not as easy as it used to be. I can't push myself like when I was in my 30's (I'm 51). I keep trying to take up yoga, thinking it's the elixir of life, but I just hate group exercise. I will say this to those of you who have given up on exercise: I watched my father physically disintegrate because all he did was walk. He has no muscle strength, and can barely get out of a chair. He's very thin, so it's not weight that's his problem. Do squats, and work on your core. You'll need it later in life. 

My wife and I had twins three weeks ago, so I'm definitely getting worse at the moment.  

I moved to a new country and new job a couple months ago, which meant leaving my trainer behind in Ann Arbor. (But she has since changed the set up at her gym, which wouldn't have worked for me, anyway, so I guess it all worked out.)

My new job comes complete with a brand new gym in the building, free of charge. I've been trying to go twice a week, though haven't made it in a couple weeks, due to an overwhelming amount of new job stress. Hopefully will get back into it tomorrow or next week.

Additionally, I'm now living in a country where owning a car is not necessary, so I have an e-bike that I ride 5 km to the train every day. Since it's an e-bike I don't have to work too hard, but I am moving constantly since you need to pedal to keep the engine running. And coming home from the train is all uphill so requires a bit of effort to help the engine.

I lost 45 lbs in 2016, so definitely closer to my goal now than last May, but I am in a holding pattern now. I would really like to lose about 5-10 more, though maintaining where I am would be fine.

My diet has become shit since moving, though, but I have managed not to gain weight, so success?

 

I've just been getting back into shape myself. Three weeks ago, I weighed 226, more than I ever have in my life. I'd like to get down around 185 and stay there (yup, that's super ambitious). I've done what I alwasy do when I need to get back in shape: start really watching what I eat (or rather: how much I eat) and, you know, actually exercising. In this case, I've started running more. I'd like to work some weight traning in as well, since I'd like most of my weight loss to come from fat and not muscle mass. I have plans for these things that have worked well for me in the past.

I have some goals to go with my running: I've run one 10K in my life, with little training, and I finished in 1:05. I was modestly overweight when I ran it (nowhere near where I am now though), and I think if I were to train correctly over an extended period of time and get my weight to a good level, I could run a 10K in under 50:00, so that's my goal. Long way to go though: I'm still not even close to that 1:05 time.

Anyway, in that three weeks I'm down from 226 to 216.8, which is a great start. I've done this enough to know that it's not unusual to get initial rapid weight loss when you make sudden changes in how much you're eating and how much your exercising, so I'm trying to keep things in perspective. I've never had a problem shedding weight when I make a determined effort. The problem is always that eventually I get lazy, stop exercising, and stop paying attention to what I eat. The real challenge as always will be to get enough lifestyle changes to stick that it doesn't all just come rushing back.

Good luck, everyone!

"If people aren’t making fun of you for the dreams you have, you’re not dreaming big enough." - Jim Harbaugh

I've been able to consistently run on an elliptical for 2.5 - 3 miles 6 days a week.  Only way it's possible is with my jailbroken Firestick.  My brain just won't let me run to music, which is also why I don't run outside or on a track.

I also play rec-league soccer 1-2- times a week at Fuller Park.  Can't wait until they open the pool so the women can distract me from my soccer game.

I think nutrition is even more important though.  My doctor has turned me on to avoiding white flour and sugar as much as possible.  So now it's whole grain everything and Costco protein bars.  Chicken, salads, broccoli as much as possible.

 

Ohh and I don't drink.  Never have.  I hope that's enough to get me to comfortable death in about 70 years.

Throughout my 20's and 30's, I weighed 350 lbs.  My 39th birthday was a wake-up call for me, a "holy shit, I'm going to be 40 in a year!" moment.  On my 40th birthday, I weighed 218 lbs.  A few months later, I was at 190, and then came back up to about 205.  I've been there ever since, about a year and a half now.

My main exercise is running with some weight training also.  I set a goal of running a 5k every month, and I'm currently on month #8 in a row.  I find that this keeps me motivated, and I'm much less likely to take a day off (I run 3-4 days a week) if I know I have a race coming up.  Last month, I ran the Big House 5k, which was amazing.  This month is the Hard Cider run in St. Johns, and next month is the Star Wars 5k in Midland.  

At 42, I'm in better shape than I was even in high school.  I'm just pissed that it took me so long to get to this point, and I wasted my youth being so heavy.  So I'm trying to enjoy it as much as I can.  I'm still a pretty slow runner, but this last weekend I set a personal best for a 5k distance, so hopefully I'll break 30 minutes soon.

I just started the P90x lean program last week and I have a lot of space in my pole barn to do it. I'm relatively lean at 6'3/180 so I'd like to put on a bit of mass. I attempt to stay on a strict diet of chicken, salmon, greens and quinoa but the beer gets me on the weekends.

Luckily I started running 5-10 miles per week over the past month so cardio wise I'm in decent shape but my upper body is lacking stamina. I'd say I'm a little closer to where I want to be than a year ago but not much.

 

I try to do cardio 3-4 times a week. 30 minutes on the bike usually. I'm waiting for the weather to get warmer at night so I can go for bike rides outdoors. Much funner.

Other than that just try to watch my diet and sometimes add light weights to my workouts. I've also recently started utilizing the sauna in my gym a few times a week for 10-20 mins. Feels great.

I got a stomach virus, which helped me lose 9 pounds in two days.

You guys should try it.

Was planning to use it to make healthy smoothies each day... so far it's been used for a healthy amount of pina coladas and margaritas.

So I've got that going for me.

I've been working out for 17 years and, bar none, the most educational and best videos to learn how to properly workout (if your goal is to get strong and cut - not for runners) is the YouTube channel Athlean-X.  Just watch a couple episodes.

I've also come to the conclusion that...

60% of your body is genetics

25% is your diet

15% is being at the gym

Eating right is the #1 thing you can do to get the body you want.   Cut out eating the crap.

 

 

I regularly lose the 3 pounds I gain during the week over the weekend when I play hockey games with my friends.  

my self and four other parents on my sons hockey team each put 200$ in an envelope.  We recorded our weights and whomever loses the most weight by percentage on September first walks away with $ 1000.

I am even after one week because I went to charleston over last weekend and ate and drank everything in sight...  one dude has lost 2% already...  

 

I intend to go from 256 to 210.  that may not win, but it would be excellent.

jdon

 

I've taken to participating in the Ragnar relays as a goal to train for.  https://www.runragnar.com/  They're tons of fun and a great challenge if you don't want to go full marathon.  I just did the one in Tennessee and I'm doing the one in Miami in November and my goal is to maintain an average of 9:00/ mile over all three legs, especially the last one where you tend to run on fumes.  I run four times a week and then do some sort of cardio two more times a week to keep up some variety.  

I also lift three times a week and while I probably am not doing the exact right way to do it, I take a notebook and write down my progress so I don't spend time trying to remember what weight I used last time.   

Last year was a physical disaster for me. I went to the ER three times with various issues and felt like complete crap. Then over the Christmas holiday I had my official Shawshank Redemption quote moment: "Get busy living or get busy dying".

I completely revamped my regiment. I went from professional couch sitting to getting up and walking. I have completed at least 10,000 steps every day since the middle of January; and some days try to get to 20,000. It's amazing to do something like take a phone call or listen in on a work phone conference and walk; look down after you've hung up and realize you've competed 5,000+ steps when you used to take that same call sitting down.

I've switched from Monster energy drinks and lots of soda to drinking nothing but water except once a week when I'll have a couple of beers. I eat a bowl of cereal, yogurt and a fiber bar for breakfast, six pieces of fruit a day, a couple of servings of vegetables, and pretty much whatever the wife cooks for dinner.

I have lost 31 pounds since that day in December. I have my stamina back and I'm sleeping better. My aches and pains have all but disappeared. Out of the blue one day in March, I pushed myself and completed a half-marathon. It was a 2:09 half-marathon, but at least I can say I did it.

I had spent the last 12 years doing nothing about getting worse, until I decided doing nothing wasn't going to get me any better. So far, I'm glad I've made the choice to get off of the couch.

Aside from the spirited discussing about Crossfit that i started, good on all of you for doing something for your health. Just remember, proper eating is critical to healthiness. Working out without eating right will get you nowhere, and sometimes you'll see regression.

I got better, than worse, now I'm on the path to better again. I had some issues I had to deal with during the 'worse' period. Hopefully they won't arise again. 

 

Basically trying to eat right. Lean protein, vegetables, minimize bad things. I'm trying to walk more (I used to run, but I have arthritisi n my feet and knees) 1-2 miles a day. I still lift 2-4 times/week. 

I have a two hour commute (luckily on train and walking), two small children, and a mediocre diet, but I'm doing what I can. I run 4-5 times a week, try to lift for 30 minutes twice a week, and realign my goals. They used to be to be able to bench 225, run around 5:15 a mile, rock climb, all that stuff when you're single and can do what you want. Now though, I'm all about being able to keep up with my kids and fit in my pants. My diet needs to be better and that's the next goal, but I think fitness goals need to be part of your life, not necessarily something you can point to as a goalline to cross.

Getting better. Was in a decent spot a couple years ago, lost the momentum. Now I'm getting it back. I just do the treadmill a half hour 5/7 and try not to overeat, simple as that.