The obesity epidemic

[Nords]

So I actually ate two Whoppers for lunch and I could barely stay awake for the rest of the day. I think they put chemicals that make you sleepy in those burgers. Today I start my quest to lose weight and keep it off. I'm just an ordinary 44 year old man who is about 30lbs overweight. I'm ready. 10/4/06 205 lbs.

Hey, no fair, you loaded up the scales before you started the competition!

I think that sleepy feeling is your body's frantic attempt to manufacture enough insulin to process the sheer volume of calories it's contending with.

Hang in there and give it a year to see how the long-term effects turn out. I know you'll be working hard, but good luck anyway!

 

[Helen]

Helen,
Tell us more about the Zone diet and your experiences with it, if you would. I'm thinking that we need a bit more structure in our diet, which is already pretty much meat and vegetables at this point.

Here's a link to the food list to chose from. He (Dr. Sears) basically breaks down food into what he calls blocks. It makes it easier to figure out how much of what you can eat.

http://www.drsears.com/foodblockguide.page

I have a modified zone diet in that I eat six 2 block meals per day. So it's 2 blocks of carbs, 2 blocks of fat and 2 blocks of protein every time I eat. Here is what I ate today (I've been semi vegetarian for 30 years plants, seafood and dairy are my protein sources).

6:30 am breakfast smoothie

1 cup blueberries
1/4 cup whey protein
1 tsp flax seed oil

9:30 am 4 egg whites
1/2 cup hummus

12:30 1 huge ass salad
1 apple
6 almonds
3 oz wild salmon

50 minute weight lifting (I eat half of the 12:30 feeding before working out and the other half when I finish)

3:30 pm 1/2 apple
1 cheese stick

50 minute walk

1/2 apple
1 cheese stick

7:30 pm 2 tofu hotdogs
3 cups steamed broccoli
1 can O'Douls beer
2 teaspoons almond butter

10:00pm 2 cups no fat vanilla yogurt
6 macadamia nuts


I've only been doing this for 3 weeks. If my vestibular disorder symptoms go away or if I have more energy and feel better, I will stay on this diet for the long haul. For me, the food fits well into how I like to eat, I'm just not used to eating so frequently.

I started to become less active over the last few years so I started walking after work a year ago. I started backpacking again this year and decided I needed to become stronger so, in May I started lifting weights again. I really want to stay in shape. I'm 49 and I can't retire for another 6.5 years. I really hope I can still backpack when I'm 56.

-helen

 

[Helen]

Helen--That diet is one similar to ones I've seen many people use when they get serious about losing wieght or gaining muscle. I personally used it and long hours in the gym to gain a total of about 40 lbs in muscle. I worked most of that off now.

Thanks for the encouragement ! I wouldn't mind staying at 120 pounds (I'm 5'3"), but shifting some fat to muscle. I can't imagine putting on 40 pounds of muscle, how long did that take you ? I wonder if gaining 20 pounds of muscle would be possible for me. I'd like to set a goal for myself.

I've been reading some strength training books and noticed they mentioned the six meals a day plan. It must be the optimum for fuel efficiency.

I enjoy lifting weights. We have a fitness center where I work, so I go there during lunch. It's nice because the progress is by default quantified. I just need to remind myself that proper form is more important than increasing the weights. I really don't want an injury.

-helen

 

[jclarksnakes]

....I thought about you all and this thread last night at work. We had 17 patients on my floor. Several of them were very large. The largest weighed 455. In talking with the guy I got the impression that he liked being the big man and would find our entire discussion here pretty silly.
jc

 

[lets-retire]

Thanks for the encouragement ! I wouldn't mind staying at 120 pounds (I'm 5'3"), but shifting some fat to muscle. I can't imagine putting on 40 pounds of muscle, how long did that take you ? I wonder if gaining 20 pounds of muscle would be possible for me. I'd like to set a goal for myself.

-helen

It took me about 8 years, but I was never a hardcore gym rat. I was very skinny before I started and had to eat a LOT of food. I was eating full size meals six times a day. It took a while before I could eat that much food. Basically I had to overwhelm my extremely fast metabolism. My weight went from about 160 up to about 210. Obviously some of that gain was fat, but I was about as defined after I gained the weight as I was before the gain.

Now I don't care that much about how defined I am, and the bulk no longer serves my purpose. I quit lifting so heavily and man did my weight shoot up, quickly. I readjusted my eating to something closer to what your eating and lost the weight. I hated being hungry all the time, until my stomach shrunk back down to normal portions. Many times I thought it would just be easier to keep eating and working out heavily, but the food and supplements got very expensive. Now I carry a little bit of extra weight, but I'd rather have the fat than have to take time away from my family and constantly monitor what I eat to lose it (I gotta have a life). My current thinking is I workout so I can eat what I want.

My set point is higher than my current weight so I just make sure I don't go up any more. The last time I lost the extra weight and was very defined I was doing about an hour of cardio each morning and an hour of lifting most nights. I only took one day off lifting per week. At the time I was deployed to the middle east and didn't anything else to do, so that's what I did to fill time.

You can do it, it just takes time and effort. The most important thing is don't expect fast noticeable gains. You might be able to lift more weight quickly and notice quick improvements in your cardio, but don't expect them. You will notice you're feeling stronger before you see any noticeable improvements. You will also probably gain weight before you lose any. That is normal you body first builds the muscle, then loses the fat. You are correct form is everything. Unless you're training for a powerlifting contest the amount of weight you lift is unimportant. Besides you can't make any gains if you're on the injured list.

 

[Martha]

For you ladies lifting weights, it is very difficult to put on enough muscle to look like those female bodybuilders, so don't worry about that. You normally don't make enough testosterone to have the dramatic gains. Not to mention those women have been training for many years.

Bummer. I want muscles like this:

 

[Martha]

I'm just an ordinary 44 year old man who is about 30lbs overweight. I'm ready. 10/4/06 205 lbs.

Great! Keep us up to date on how it is going and what works and doesn't work.

 

[lets-retire]

I was referring to this look.

http://www.lisaaukland.com/

But the picture you posted is doable with a LOT of work.

 

[Martha]

....I thought about you all and this thread last night at work. We had 17 patients on my floor. Several of them were very large. The largest weighed 455. In talking with the guy I got the impression that he liked being the big man and would find our entire discussion here pretty silly.
jc

Maybe yes, maybe no. Given the attitudes towards the obese, a defensive posture wouldn't be unnexpected.

 

[cube_rat]

Bummer. I want muscles like this:

Linda Hamilton looked srawny/anorexic back in 91.

<sigh> I didn't want to do it, but here goes. I was heavily into bodybuilding (no drugs!) 10 years ago and sported 14% BF on a 5'5", 135lb body. My boyfriend at the time was a competitive bodybuilder who took heavy duty steriods. It took a lot of hard work to get down the level I was at. A lot of eating very clean foods, supplements, lifting program with A LOT of cardio.

It comes down to 3 things in this order: 1) genetics 2) diet 3) exercise. Notice exercise is number 3. Genetics rule. If your grandparents gave you big hips, small shoulders, etc, you will lose weight and have...err, smaller, big hips and smaller shoulders. Lifting weights can help offset genetic weirdnesses/weaknesses if your program is designed appropriate to YOUR body. If your grandparents gave you a nice lean frame, then you probably won't have to spend hours on the stairmaster, but will need a program to build a little muscle on your frame.

For you ladies, you simply cannot put on muscle like IFBB competitors without anabolic steriods. Period. Don't be afraid of touching weights. Your body will actually start to look fitter and tighter on a regular toning program. Your bones will love you for it.

Now, the reprecussions of my lifestyle 10 years ago of heavy lifting is: bad knees, torn rotator cuff and back problems. Some of these injuries pre-dated the whole bodybuilding thing with martial art injuries and compounded by running. My body hurts most of the time. Damn old age too. Hey, I still look good.

 

[Khan]

My most successful weight loss was when had typhoid fever. I had already lost from 160 down to 150, just because I couldn't find enough food to eat out where I was. Then I got typhoid and took off another 15 in no time at all. I was ready to model Hugo Boss at that point.

However, I am not sure than I would recommend either starvation or typhoid as a plan for weight loss, effective as it was.

Ha

Several years ago I lost 5 pounds in 3 days. I wrenched my back, and between the pain and the painkillers and the severely limited mobility, I hardly ate anything.

 

[TromboneAl]

The new PBS series NOVA Now, series opener, has a good article on this. If you missed it, you can view it here.

 

[Nords]

Bummer. I want muscles like this:

IIRC that was several hours a day for two years with a personal trainer and a nutritionist. It was also her full-time job and she had to marry the guy who was paying the bills.

Is the look worth the price?

Our kid recently noticed Janet Jackson's workout results and wondered how she'd do in a cage match against Tina Turner. (Hey, it's my fault that we listen to "Alice Cooper Nights" on our local classic rock radio station.) I opined that despite all of Janet's youthful vigor she'd get her head torn off by a real professional. Our kid ambushed my wife with the same question (before I had a chance for a parental brief) and got exactly the same answer.

I was referring to this look.

When I see that on a human of any gender, only one thought runs through my mind: steroids.

We have a woman bodybuilder in our neighborhood who's not far behind that look and must be a competitor. I frequently see her wearing tight t-shirts saying "Caution: 0% fat diet, 100% bitch" or similar sentiments.

I wonder if Lisa could run a mile or survive an hour of aerobics. Maintaining that much muscle mass is bound to cause problems if she doesn't keep up the weightlifting. Someday she's going to have to cut back on the lifting and the subsequent ketosis may be life-threatening!

<sigh> I didn't want to do it, but here goes. I was heavily into bodybuilding (no drugs!) 10 years ago and sported 14% BF on a 5'5", 135lb body. My boyfriend at the time was a competitive bodybuilder who took heavy duty steriods. It took a lot of hard work to get down the level I was at. A lot of eating very clean foods, supplements, lifting program with A LOT of cardio.

This lifestyle after posting about being a 14-year-old hardbody on a Hawaiian beach with a pakalolo party? What a long, strange trip it's been...

Now, the reprecussions of my lifestyle 10 years ago of heavy lifting is: bad knees, torn rotator cuff and back problems. Some of these injuries pre-dated the whole bodybuilding thing with martial art injuries and compounded by running. My body hurts most of the time. Damn old age too. Hey, I still look good.

I'm switching from 800 mg ibuprofen 3x/day to whatever the equivalent would be in naproxen (still ramping up the dose). It's not damn old age, it's joint abuse!

The best pain/joint relief help I've ever found (so far, fattys notwithstanding) is Jolie Bookspan's "Fix Your Own Pain" (thanks, Akaisha!). A few minor changes in posture & stride have made a tremendous difference. Jolie's also started recycling the material through her blog at http://www.healthline.com/blogs/exercise_fitness/.

 

[azanon]

Maybe yes, maybe no. Given the attitudes towards the obese, a defensive posture wouldn't be unnexpected.

Apathetic people are rarely defensive. You have to care to be defensive.

 

[jclarksnakes]

Apathetic people are rarely defensive. You have to care to be defensive.

I don't think he was apathetic or defensive. He seemed truly happy to be a big guy who got plenty of attention BECAUSE he was so big. BTW, he was about 5'8" inches tall.
jc

 

[azanon]

I don't think he was apathetic or defensive. He seemed truly happy to be a big guy who got plenty of attention BECAUSE he was so big. BTW, he was about 5'8" inches tall.
jc

apathetic..... about being overweight. If he's happy about it, I think its a safe assumption that he doesn't care that he's overweight, is all i'm saying.

 

[cube_rat]

Nords: Who wasn't a hard body at 14? I agree with the joint abuse statement though. I hurt

 

[Zoocat]

Oldbabe, you might look at strength training too. I am trying to improve my strength and build muscle. I am very much a wimp.

Martha,
I did the Body for Life program for a year and worked with a personal trainer. I put on a lot of muscle, most of which I still carry around, which makes my BMI almost too high. I'm not flabby, even though overweight. And I still weight train every week but not with as much poundage as I did several years ago. If you haven't checked out the Body for Life plan, the web site is pretty interesting with its startling before and afters.

OldBabe

 

[Da Nag]

Bummer. I want muscles like this:

There's a relatively easy way to get there...break a leg.

My wife was on crutches last year for 6 weeks, and she refused to let them slow her down. Went everywhere with them.

She's in decent shape, but thin on top. With the crutches, she quickly buffed up, and looked just like LH in T3...what a turn on. There's something very sexy about a chick that can kick your ass.

I thought about busting her other leg when she got off the crutches.

 

[ktupper]

Re: The Atkins Cancer Revolution - Dr. Joel Fuhrman

I am very serious about this. Why do we form societies and communities if not to help each other out? I am so tired of the "rugged individualist" attitude of I'm fine, screw you.

I'm with you on that.

The difficulty comes in finding any significant minotiry to agree on a plan or solution, let alone a majority.

Personally, as a believer in the inherent sinfulness of man, and a redeemer who will one day set all things right, I think these issues stem from an incorrect worldview. Fixes on the outside deal only with symptoms.

We should do the best we can to help with the symptoms in the meanwhile, but the problem will resurface somewhere else until the root cause is fixed. Of course, people like to write me off as a religious nut, which is fine by me. LOL

 

[Martha]

I don't think he was apathetic or defensive. He seemed truly happy to be a big guy who got plenty of attention BECAUSE he was so big. BTW, he was about 5'8" inches tall.
jc

If so, I would find it unusual. I still think he could be posing. http://calorielab.com/news/2006/07/05/overweight-and-overwrought-a-common-combination/


Behavioral science has finally lowered into its grave the coffin bearing the “jolly fat person” myth. A Harvard Med School study of 9,125 adult American men and women has found that “obese” and “joie de vive” go together like sandpaper and skin.

Some numbers to chew on, if you must chew on something –

An obese individual is 25 percent more likely to suffer some mood or anxiety disorder such as depression. If you are a Caucasian American with a higher education, the number can soar up to 44 percent. While the average American stands a 30 percent chance of being obese, the average depressed American’s chances run up to 40 percent; and whereas 20 percent of Americans in general are diagnosed at some time in their lives as depressed, the percentage of obese Americans thus diagnosed is 28.

 

[Martha]

Linda Hamilton looked srawny/anorexic back in 91.

<sigh>
It comes down to 3 things in this order: 1) genetics 2) diet 3) exercise. Notice exercise is number 3. Genetics rule.

Thanks for your story Cube. As a 51 year old and genetically nothing like Linda Hamilton, I have no expectations of ever looking muscled. I just want to be more fit and stronger, so I am working on it.

 

[FinanceDude]

Thanks for your story Cube. A 51 years old and genetically nothing like Linda Hamilton, I have no expectations of ever looking muscled. I just want to be more fit and stronger, so I am working on it.

if genetics DON'T rule, we better make number 3 number 1...............

 

[haha]

Thanks for your story Cube. A 51 years old and genetically nothing like Linda Hamilton, I have no expectations of ever looking muscled.

Speaking as a man, I don't get the attraction of defined muscles on women. If I liked sinewy sex partners, I would go gay.

Ha

 

[FinanceDude]

Speaking as a man, I don't get the attraction of defined muscles on women. If I liked sinewy sex partners, I would go gay.
Ha

Where can I buy splash guards for my computer screen? Because all the soda I'm spitting on it is taking a toll.................

Ha, you could go female bodybuilder, and stay away from men............