OT: Lost 50 lbs in 21 weeks

[bigboxes]

Not someone else. Me. Boxes.

Last fall, stood on the scale one day and said, "No more." I kept buying bigger pants. Reached limit as I was stretching out that last pair of pants. Decided that I needed to change.

I know that to get in great shape you need to put in a lot of time. I couldn't do the four hours a day. After all, I have work and all the responsibilities around the home that take up most of my time. I remember when I was at Navy boot camp and they got us up early and we kept at it until we went to bed for the night.

So, I vowed to get up an hour earlier each day. That gives me time to wake up and to get a cardio in. I have a treadmill. I walk on it for at least 30 minutes a day. After warming up for ten minutes I slowly up the incline a degree every minute until I'm at 10% incline. After a couple of minutes I start lowering the incline until I'm back at zero. That gives me a couple of minutes to cool down. I did that for a couple of weeks and then started doing a longer second cardio on my days off. Eventually, I was sometimes doing three a day. All the while watching tv, texting or surfing internet on my tablet. And the pounds came off.

I gave up my beer entirely until I lost the first 16.5 pounds. Bought myself a six-pack. When I finished that it was back on the wagon until I got to my next goal, another 15 pounds. I started working in some weights into my routine. Eventually, I was doing weights 2-3 times a week.

Although I pretty much eat whatever I want, I am eating healthier. Been buying mostly fresh produce, lean meats and high-fiber cereal. Snacking on raisins, prunes, walnuts, almonds and greek yogurt. It's great to be able to eat a bacon cheeseburger and still lose weight!

Had my annual physical in January. Cholesterol is within acceptable range. HDL is above their good range. Triglycerides are rock bottom. Blood pressure is 97/53. Resting heart rate at 49.

I hit 50 pounds of weight loss at the end of February. Been holding steady since then. Drink a couple of beers and I'm now such a lightweight. I started buying protein powder to supplement my diet to help improve my BMI. Dropped from 25% to 15%.

Bounding up stairs and darting around corners like I'm 20 years younger.Threw away my fat pants about three months ago. Fitting in clothes that I haven't worn in over 15 years. Bought some 33W shorts last month that are starting to fall off my butt. Eff yeah. Feels good man.

 

[c2o]

That is impressive.
Sounds like you are nearly Speedo ready.

 

[rrthusker]

Congratulations that took a lot of dedication.

 

[bigboxes]

That is impressive.
Sounds like you are nearly Speedo ready.

LOL. Not quite. However, I'm not embarrassed any longer.

 

[iROOT4nu]

Bought a 50 pound bag of dog food today. That's a lot of weight lost good sir.

 

[bigboxes]

Congratulations that took a lot of dedication.

Thanks Randy. I had a number of people worried that I was doing too much. I lost the weight the right way. Slow and steady. 2-3 pounds a week. Critics that say I did too much are wrong. I definitely earned it. (Literally) Worked my ass off. Not to mention you don't want to constantly weigh yourself. Just once a week to get a baseline. If it's going in the right direction then you are doing well.

I testify to others and give encouragement. You've got no competition except yourself. Do better than you did the day before and you win.

 

[bigboxes]

Bought a 50 pound bag of dog food today. That's a lot of weight lost good sir.

My knees know that is a fact.

 

[skintight]

Fantastic news Box. about 1 and 1/2 years ago i lost 40 lbs as well. took me about 14 weeks. i hit a high mark on the scale and it was a crisis moment for me. the exercise part isn't an issue for me as i'm a competitive speed skater. it's 80% nutritional modification for me. no sugar or cream in coffee or tea, only oatmeal or hardboil egg for breakfast, lunch is 1 yogurt, 1 fruit, 1 tuna, absolutely no snacks between meals, and anything that i want for dinner but with reduced portions. for example on nights that we had pizza i used to eat 8-9 slices. now only 2-3 slices. now that i have reached my goal weight i can at times be more flexible with the nutrition. skating and cycling performance has shot through the roof and i have a reasonable chance to qualify for nationals if i stay healthy. your right----it' all so very much worth it. cheers to you.

 

[Hoosker Du]

Congrats, man! You should be very proud of yourself. That's quite an accomplishment.

 

[bleedhuskerred]

It takes a lot of discipline and dedication to do what you did. Congrats Man!

 

[bomber89]

Good for you! I've made a change to my eating habits since November and with no exercise I've lost 30 lbs. I've got another 50 to go. Losing about a pound to a pound and a half a week. No sugar, and I just eat smaller portions. I also have cut back on carbs. Having been in the Army I told myself when I got out I would never exercise just for the sake of exercising. I do walk and shoot hoops now and then but I'm not going to torture myself, I'd rather go slower and keep my back and knees. That's just me though. Keep it up Boxes!

 

[otismotis08]

Congrats. Been on Atkins for the past 2-3 years. Lost 30 lbs in the first few months and am keeping it off. It's a lifestyle change. Carbs are evil.

 

[tpmcg]

that's great! it feels a lot better not having to tote those extra pounds around.

is it 'littleboxes' now?

 

[AdaminLincoln]

I'm on that journey as well. 15 pounds since the new year. Congrats on your success.

 

[GretnaShawn]

Good for you. I lost about 15 lbs recently. It turns out diet and moderate exercise do wonders!

 

[Bugeater]

Guess we'll have to call you Small Boxes now! Seriously, that is a great accomplishment, keep it up and hold steady!

 

[Diplomat_Dean]

Congrats on the weight loss. I always admire those who can stick with it. As an avid gym nut, I see a lot of people come in with the initial desire only to give up within a few weeks or months. It's a major lifestyle change and not easy.

A piece of advice I'd give is, once you start picking up the weights, focus less on pounds lost and more on body fat % and measurements. Pay absolutely zero attention to the BMI standard, it's garbage. You'll start gaining muscle, lose fat, but gain weight due to muscle gains.

 

[bigboxes]

Congrats. Been on Atkins for the past 2-3 years. Lost 30 lbs in the first few months and am keeping it off. It's a lifestyle change. Carbs are evil.

I don't like to give up food. Love rice and bread, just less of them.

 

[bigboxes]

Congrats on the weight loss. I always admire those who can stick with it. As an avid gym nut, I see a lot of people come in with the initial desire only to give up within a few weeks or months. It's a major lifestyle change and not easy.

A piece of advice I'd give is, once you start picking up the weights, focus less on pounds lost and more on body fat % and measurements. Pay absolutely zero attention to the BMI standard, it's garbage. You'll start gaining muscle, lose fat, but gain weight due to muscle gains.

I don't give a crap about BMI, per se. Like weight, it's just a baseline from where I was before. I never was a big guy so I don't expect to be a big guy now that I've lost the weight. I'm just back to being my normal self. It's about being the best Boxes I can be!

 

[Archie Graham]

Nice work, man. That's a heck of an accomplishment.

 

[vs540husker]

That's awesome congrats!
I've lost 40lbs and am shooting another 15-20lbs. Did the whole running and eating healthy thing, lost 14lbs, plateaued, gave up & gained it back. A year later decided to try again but take a more scientific approach and did a ton of research. Learned what macro nutrients, BMR, and TDEE are and how those correlate to weight loss/gain. So I downloaded an app and just track my calories each day (takes 1-2 minutes of meal planning once you get use to it) and haven't looked back since.

 

[bootleg11]

Not someone else. Me. Boxes.

Last fall, stood on the scale one day and said, "No more." I kept buying bigger pants. Reached limit as I was stretching out that last pair of pants. Decided that I needed to change.

I know that to get in great shape you need to put in a lot of time. I couldn't do the four hours a day. After all, I have work and all the responsibilities around the home that take up most of my time. I remember when I was at Navy boot camp and they got us up early and we kept at it until we went to bed for the night.

So, I vowed to get up an hour earlier each day. That gives me time to wake up and to get a cardio in. I have a treadmill. I walk on it for at least 30 minutes a day. After warming up for ten minutes I slowly up the incline a degree every minute until I'm at 10% incline. After a couple of minutes I start lowering the incline until I'm back at zero. That gives me a couple of minutes to cool down. I did that for a couple of weeks and then started doing a longer second cardio on my days off. Eventually, I was sometimes doing three a day. All the while watching tv, texting or surfing internet on my tablet. And the pounds came off.

I gave up my beer entirely until I lost the first 16.5 pounds. Bought myself a six-pack. When I finished that it was back on the wagon until I got to my next goal, another 15 pounds. I started working in some weights into my routine. Eventually, I was doing weights 2-3 times a week.

Although I pretty much eat whatever I want, I am eating healthier. Been buying mostly fresh produce, lean meats and high-fiber cereal. Snacking on raisins, prunes, walnuts, almonds and greek yogurt. It's great to be able to eat a bacon cheeseburger and still lose weight!

Had my annual physical in January. Cholesterol is within acceptable range. HDL is above their good range. Triglycerides are rock bottom. Blood pressure is 97/53. Resting heart rate at 49.

I hit 50 pounds of weight loss at the end of February. Been holding steady since then. Drink a couple of beers and I'm now such a lightweight. I started buying protein powder to supplement my diet to help improve my BMI. Dropped from 25% to 15%.

Bounding up stairs and darting around corners like I'm 20 years younger.Threw away my fat pants about three months ago. Fitting in clothes that I haven't worn in over 15 years. Bought some 33W shorts last month that are starting to fall off my butt. Eff yeah. Feels good man.

Congratulations!

 

[TheBeav815]

Keep after it!

I'm a big believer in weight training if you want to really melt some calories off. Cardio is great, but the amount of time and effort you have to put in compared to doing weights for an hour or so, it's not even close in terms of burning calories and building lean muscle.

Just went back to the gym myself, was getting a pretty bad case of "dad bod" and I hear you about being at the limit on your pants. That's where I finally drew the line.

It will really creep up on you. The weirdest thing to me was having a good workout a couple times, and then NOT feeling guilty for eating what I wanted the next day. I never noticed that I was starting to feel that way every time I ate, but I sure noticed it once I felt like I'd put the work in to not have to fuss over enjoying my food.

 

[Ohio_husker]

Fantastic job BB! I am curious if you could share your age and starting point? I need to lose 30 Lbs and per the 'charts' could be 50. I have been lifting 2-3 days a week on my lunches for the past couple months but my cardio is not good in the winter. I am still active, ran 5k's 2 days in a row a month ago but daylight is tough in Ohio winters. My weight does not come off like it used to either...

Thanks for the motivation in reading your success!

 

[otismotis08]

I don't like to give up food. Love rice and bread, just less of them.

I love beef and cheese, and I can have all I want. Works perfect for me.
Congrats again!

 

[bigboxes]

Fantastic job BB! I am curious if you could share your age and starting point? I need to lose 30 Lbs and per the 'charts' could be 50. I have been lifting 2-3 days a week on my lunches for the past couple months but my cardio is not good in the winter. I am still active, ran 5k's 2 days in a row a month ago but daylight is tough in Ohio winters. My weight does not come off like it used to either...

Thanks for the motivation in reading your success!

I'm 49 and was 216.5 at my fattest. Like I said earlier, I'm a skinny guy that was trapped in a fat guy. I love cardio. When I was a young adult I would run all the time and I could just burn it off. I'll admit I was drinking too much. Why work out when a drink will make you feel good. Well, I developed arthritis in my right foot where the big toe joins the foot. I had surgery to aid my mobility, but my cartilage was destroyed.For a year it felt like I was walking on a rock. When the pain finally went away my wife was diagnosed with Stage IV cancer. I've had to work two jobs ever since.

So, instead of being my own boss and working out whenever I wanted I was always tired and hurting. Last thing I wanted to do was give up sleep and work out. The weight slowly piled on. I knew it was bad and felt gross. You get to the point where you just feel this is how it is to get older. And then, just like Popeye, it's "That's all I can stands, cuz I can't stands n'more!" Toot! Toot!

 

[bigboxes]

I love beef and cheese, and I can have all I want. Works perfect for me.
Congrats again!

Had a bunch of awful carbs for lunch. LOL

Just finished with a cardio. Think I will order a pizza for dinner!

 

[baseball31ne]

BB, congrats for sure. Had a big weight drop myself since last summer and have been able to keep it off. That is fun part, wish you well as you make the changes permanent.

 

[otismotis08]

Had a bunch of awful carbs for lunch. LOL

Just finished with a cardio. Think I will order a pizza for dinner!

Nice!

 

[TheBeav815]

Fantastic job BB! I am curious if you could share your age and starting point? I need to lose 30 Lbs and per the 'charts' could be 50. I have been lifting 2-3 days a week on my lunches for the past couple months but my cardio is not good in the winter. I am still active, ran 5k's 2 days in a row a month ago but daylight is tough in Ohio winters. My weight does not come off like it used to either...

Thanks for the motivation in reading your success!

A lot of people get empty calories from drinks like pop, juice, beer. Nothing wrong with some once in a while, but adding more water to your routine can help with a lot of that. If you're lifting quite a bit mid-day, try going bigger on breakfast and lighter on dinner so you can let that calorie burn from lifting work on fat stores instead of a huge dinner.

 

[jteten]

Awesome Boxes. Congrats and keep it up!

 

[AdaminLincoln]

Boxes - Did you have plateaus while you were losing weight? It sounds like you and I are doing roughly the same strategy. I have a treadclimber that I do for 30 minutes (4) times a week and am watching portion size and carbs, but I have been at 15 pounds lost for 3 weeks.

 

[sparky62]

Congrats boxes. Keep up the good work.

 

[bigboxes]

Nice!

Doing Atkins for lunch. LOL

 

[TheBeav815]

Boxes - Did you have plateaus while you were losing weight? It sounds like you and I are doing roughly the same strategy. I have a treadclimber that I do for 30 minutes (4) times a week and am watching portion size and carbs, but I have been at 15 pounds lost for 3 weeks.

Don't let that discourage you. There is very often a "crossover point" where you're building lean muscle while losing fat. Muscle is around 3X as dense, so at some point the added muscle makes it seem like you're not "losing weight" any more, even though you may still be burning off fat.

Try measuring another way, such as tape measure around the waist, to see if you're still losing fat or if you've hit a point where you've gone roughly as far as you can without intensifying your exercise regimen. Or if you have access to accurate fat percentage measurement tools, you can try those. But some can be very inaccurate.

 

[Cornicator]

Congrats on the weight loss. I always admire those who can stick with it. As an avid gym nut, I see a lot of people come in with the initial desire only to give up within a few weeks or months. It's a major lifestyle change and not easy.

A piece of advice I'd give is, once you start picking up the weights, focus less on pounds lost and more on body fat % and measurements. Pay absolutely zero attention to the BMI standard, it's garbage. You'll start gaining muscle, lose fat, but gain weight due to muscle gains.

For the hell of it, I went and calculated my BMI.

I am 6'5 219 lbs currently. I have a 33 inch waist, and skinny to the point that women in my office are often flabbergasted by the amount of cake or sweets I eat while looking extremely skinny.

My BMI is 26 and I am considered overweight.

 

[planored]

Nice work boxes. I have gained 10 or more since my hip replacement. Next Monday is the start of Be LiKe Boxes program!! Just the weight not Being a Reds of Bruins fan!

 

[TheBeav815]

For the hell of it, I went and calculated my BMI.

I am 6'5 219 lbs currently. I have a 33 inch waist, and skinny to the point that women in my office are often flabbergasted by the amount of cake or sweets I eat while looking extremely skinny.

My BMI is 26 and I am considered overweight.

BMI is a very mediocre measure of fitness. If you have much muscle weight, you wind up in the "overweight" category pretty easily.

 

[bigboxes]

Boxes - Did you have plateaus while you were losing weight? It sounds like you and I are doing roughly the same strategy. I have a treadclimber that I do for 30 minutes (4) times a week and am watching portion size and carbs, but I have been at 15 pounds lost for 3 weeks.

I'm no expert. Thebeav is correct. Muscle weighs more than fat. However, I was doing a minimum of 30 minutes every day. The occasional day off if I had to, but every freakin' day. On my days off I'm doing weights and multiple cardios. Plus, I increase the intensity on my longer workouts.

Here has been my routine on the treadmill:

Remember, I'm doing longer, multiple workouts on my days off. I choose to do this. I'm still doing chores around the home. I'm still running errands around town. I'm still relaxing and going to the movies or watching shows at home. I'm just pushing myself to work in these workouts throughout my day.

 

[bigboxes]

Weighed myself this morning and found I had lost another three pounds. I've hit a plateau because I have not been as vigilant on my diet and, as others have noted, I have been building some muscle. The pants becoming looser is a giveaway.