The Great Loose Weight Thread

[Mad Matt]

Haven't kept with this thread. Dang it, I should've. I'm down almost 50 lbs to 193. Had to take time off from the gym since I screwed up my rotator cuff lifting like a madman.....Even with the time I've been away from working out, I still haven't put any weight back on.

Starting to work out again this Sunday. Going to see an orthopedic surgeon on Monday. Hopefully things go well. I'm going to ask about a cortisone shot and see what he thinks. I have a very physical job and can't take the time off to let the shoulder heal. Prescription naprosyn hasn't helped the shoulder as much as I can tell.

[Rogue Mermaid]

Well, the gym turned out to be wasted money. I haven't been since March.

But I have been jogging. I just got back from a mile run with about another mile of warm up/cool down walking. This is the fourth time this week . I'm going to go again tomorrow.

I love jogging! (just have to keep telling myself that...)

[The Doctor]

I've dropped a full stone, but I need to drop another stone and a half. Vigilance will win in the end. Then I'll bloody drink my weight in Guinness!

[LongTom]

Just finished my weight routine. Second one this week. I really should be doing four, three at the very least.

The scale actually read 184 this morning, for what that's worth (not much). Biking 5 miles and walking 1-3/4 miles 5 days a week isn't currently making the difference. Hopefully getting the lifting back into the mix will fix that.

[Mad Matt]

When doing cardio for more than 20 minutes, the body begins to catabolize the protein from your muscles. That's something you don't want to happen if your ultimate goal is weight loss. 1 pound of muscle will have your body burning an extra 50 calories per day JUST to maintain that muscle.

I've got 2 new books I'm reading right now. Once I'm through reading, I will put them into practice. First one is called Powerfoods and the other one is called the Abs Diet. Both are from Rodale Books and Men's Health. If you get a chance, see if your local library has a copy you can check out. If not, they're around $30 each. WELL worth the investment for what I want to do to my body.

[LongTom]

Weight workout last night. Tetanus shot today (unrelated, but the nurse warned the muscles may be cranky for couple of days; I'll try to not let it interfere with the next workout).

My blood pressure is back down to nominal levels, too!

[Red-Handed Jill]

Ah - tetanus shots. Some vaccines are suspended in a water solution, which disburses quickly; others in an oil solution, which takes a few days. OTC pain medication works wonders for tetanus shot pain.

I bought a couple of heavier ankle weights and have started using those three times a week. And Jack's been complaining of extra weight, so he's now on board the weight-loss wagon. Makes it a lot easier for me, I'll tell ya.

Also, after years of looking, I found a pair of killer jeans in my goal size (in the right proportions - no huge gap in the back of the waistline and they actually go to the waist. Do you know how rare those are???) So I have even more incentive.

[Silkie McDonough]

Through no efforts of my own I managed to loose 10 lbs this past week. Not being able to eat was most likely the cause. All I did was drink warm liquids. Heck, even OJ was too cold and acidic. Boy am I glad that's over!

[BriarRose Kildare]

Ah, the diet and exercise. Yes sticking to a routine can be very difficult. However, in the last 5 months I have lost nearly all of the baby weight I gained when I was pregnant with my son. I am now back in to my size 6 jeans. YEAH!!!! And in a couple of more months I hope to drop the remainder 5 pounds. Dancing is great for the soul and the body I have found....and I am enjoying every minute of being back to my old self again.

[Asukaru]

Going to kick it up a notch here shortly - due to school and other things, my gym buddy and I were only able to work out twice a week (tuesdays and Thursdays). Now that summer is here we're planning on going Monday Wednesday Friday - plus I'm going to be joing a belly dance class on Saturday mornings :)

Other than that I'm still staying steady.

[LongTom]

Hee, hee! Lookit me, I'm a poison tree frog!

Okay, okay, those are my new "please don't run me off the road, because you can't possibly claim to not have seen me" bicycling togs.

So why am I posting them in this thread? For the first time in my LIFE, that t-shirt is a MEDIUM, not a large. And for the first time, my belly is not wider than my ribcage. I haven't ditched the spare tire completely yet (yes, I am sucking in the gut in the photo below, a little bit) but I can almost claim to look fit.

No, you may not see the "before" pictures. A poison tree frog has to preserve a sense of dignity, after all...

p.s. oh, right. checkin time. I did all three weight workouts this week. Thank you everyone particpating here, for keeping me motivated.

[blackjohn]

Wooo! That's great Tom! Keep up the good work!

I haven't done squat lately. Too much real world stuff bogging me down... the library is a disaster again, which means the exercise bike is buried under hats and wigs and swords and books and stuff. On the plus side, the teeny little closet in the library where I keep the overflow of stuff is now very tidy, with everything packed into a plastic storage bin.

But I did cut the grass the other day, and meant to use that as a justification to post...

[LongTom]

Welcome back, John! How was the stress test? We've been worried about you.

[LongTom]

Got my weight workout in last night, on track for 3 per week for the second week in a row. That seems to be finally shifting things again. Scale says 181, my newest pair of pants is actually baggy on me, and I think I may need to punch a new hole in my belt.

If I hit 175 by end of June as planned, I'm seriously considering celebrating with a new wardrobe.

[Asukaru]

As much as I don't want to - because (dammit!) I LIKED going to the gym regularly - I'm going to have to cease with the working out for the next couple of weeks until my back gets all straightened out.

I did a number on it during (I kid you not) a coughing fit, and my chiropractor discovered that on top of the pulled muscles that I have, I also have a pinched never along with some other issues. He's advised me to not do anything until he gives me the okay.

Methinks he knows me too well

[Jacky Tar]

Long Tom, ye look like a very fit poison tree frog!

[blackjohn]

I'm going to assume four hours of walking around dressed as a pirate in near 90° weather wearing three layers of wool counts as exercise...

[blackjohn]

Welcome back, John! How was the stress test? We've been worried about you.

Thanks! I appreciate that!

Stress test... went well enough as far as I can tell. Of course, I haven't gone to the follow-up yet, but when the doctor got my heart rate up to 153, he said as far as he could tell from the readout on the monitor my heart looked perfectly normal. His theory is I could've have an esophageal spasm, which hurts every bit as much as a heart attack.

I think burning the candle at both ends and in the middle is finally catching up with me.

[LongTom]

Glad to hear it doesn't seem to be the old ticker, John, though it must be frustrating not to know what is going on. I hope it continues to clear up on its own.

Sorry to hear about the back problems, Asukaru. I hate setbacks too. I strained my back coughing once, when I had mononucleosis 15 years ago. Ouch! I hope you still aren't coughing!

Thank you Jacky. It feels good to have dropped 16 pounds. Only 20 more to go! (groan) Speaking of which, I did an hour hike this morning, about 2 miles long and about a thousand feet elevation change. I have to get out there more regularly. Redwoods in the fog are just too nice. Good for the soul.

[blackjohn]

I really need to get back to doing this... 20 minutes walk around the block... it's a (re)start!

[Hester]

I'm hoping my bout with stomach flu will help me shed a few pounds. But I doubt it! Once I'm rehydrated, I'll probably be back to normal. In the meantime, I'm missing my daily walks.

[LongTom]

Did my weights tonight. I'm up to 30 situps per set, 90 total. It's good to be out of the red ink, as it were, regarding making progress. Positive progress is positive reinforcement. Setbacks are the pits, and working my way back to where I was before the problem occurred just isn't the same.

Here's wishing everyone a speedy recovery, and then back on track. A (low-calorie) toast!

[blackjohn]

An hour+ to cut 1/3 of my yard... time to get a bigger lawnmower! But it is exercise, and I do enjoy mowing the lawn.

Hey Tom, good news from the heart doctor! I went in for the nuclear stress test follow-up today, and he said my heart, valves, arteries, etc all look perfectly normal. Then he followed it up with, "now the big question is, if it wasn't your heart, what was it?"

He had some interesting things to say about sensory perception in the human body. "Take a pair of calipers and open them to 1mm. You can feel each point as a separate point on your fingers. But move that to your arm, and you only feel one point because the nerves aren't as sensitive there. Move it to your back, and to feel two points, you'd have to spread them maybe 1/2 inch apart. Now inside your body... "

Inside your body, it's REALLY hard to tell where pain is coming from... pretty fascinating.

[LongTom]

Weights twice this week so far; and the bike/walk to work every day, which is becoming so routine as to almost not count. My scale said 180 this morning. It is inching down with excruciating slowness. Nothing for it but to persevere.

John, I'm glad to hear the doctor's report. Best wishes for a complete recovery.

[Mad Matt]

Well, I've reached my first target weight of 185 pounds. Came down from around 240 or so. Doc says my rotator cuff isn't torn, so I can start rehabilitating my shoulder. Putting on more muscle and burning even more fat!

BTW - You know you've lost a LOT of weight when the shorts you couldn't fit into because they were too small, now are too big and would fall off if you weren't wearing a belt!