So here is how this is gonna work, I am basically throwing myself out there (gross details and all) and inviting everyone who reads this (if anyone at all) to come along on this journey! I will be updating as I go along. I know that there are more people out there than myself who are doing the whole "new years resolution" thing and dropping those excess lbs, but some people are to timid or to shy to actually ask the questions or share that they are trying (I have met many). SO, I am meeting with a nutritionist, personal trainer and a nurse who are all helping me with this journey! I am grateful for all of them! BUT the point of telling you all about them is that they will be guiding me through this with tips and hints and professional opinions and I will be sharing all that advice with you guys on here! Use the tips that help you! Feel free to pass the information along! ALSO, I want EVERYONE to know that if you have ANY questions or concerns or just curiosities about anything along this journey please feel free to ask me and I can ask my lovely group of people who I am working with on this!
SO here we go.... THIS is the beginning...
Right now I am 6' tall (barely) and weigh 245 lbs as of January 29th, 2010. According to my nutritionist, my body-mass-index is far to high! By the way.. for future reference I will be calling it my "BMI" because that is what everyone else calls it so please refer back to this if ya can't remember what "BMI" stands for... Body Mass Index. So my nutritionist explained the following to me....
6' tall and weighing 245# it gives you (me) a BMI of 33.3 NOW what that means is the following:
The BMI chart (for males) is:
<18.9>
18.9-24.9 = normal weight
25.0-29.0 = over weight
30.0-39.9 = obese
40.0> morbidly obese
6' tall and weighing 245# it gives you (me) a BMI of 33.3 NOW what that means is the following:
The BMI chart (for males) is:
<18.9>
18.9-24.9 = normal weight
25.0-29.0 = over weight
30.0-39.9 = obese
40.0> morbidly obese
There is a weird formula to calculate your BMI, and it's NOT be-all/tell all number either but it does help you to understand where you are and where you need to be. At 6 ft tall you need to get down to 183 lbs to be in the "healthy zone" NOW there is a caveat here too and that is that you can give yourself an additional 10% weight if you're typically a big guy.
Meaning: I can drop down to 201-ish lbs and still be in the "healthy-weight" zone.
So there is the math part of this. I will be updating on the next blog what the ACTUAL formula for the BMI is for both male and female so everyone can feel involved.
***IMPORTANT*** Different trainers, different people, different EVERYONE will tell you different things, I am not saying that what I am being told is the universal standard, I am not telling you that THIS is rock-solid-set-in-stone-ten-commandments. This is just info that has been passed on to me by the people I see who are helping me with this. So if any of it doesn't work for you and you have different info that works, PLEASE comment with it, please share it with others!
Now.... on to the food part of this....
Mr. Nutrionist also gave me the following tips...
When you are eating your meals, eat the regular serving size and stop there, don't scoop seconds and thirds. When you have eaten the normal portion servings, eat a sweet piece of fruit afterwords. The sweet taste will trigger your brain that the meal is done and your body will quit telling you that you are hungry. NO FAST FOOD. Nope nope nope. Don't even think about it. Skip it completely. Once every couple weeks is okay, SMALL fries, modest burger, AVOID grease at ALL costs. Red meat is not your friend, sea-foods and white meats should be your new friends! Replace hamburger with ground turkey, replace your fast food with home-made meals (hard to do with work and kids and life, but if you set up a meal plan where you can make a casserole or dishes that you can portion and use for lunches during the week it REALLY helps out a LOT. Use a lot of tuna, use a lot of chicken/turkey, BAKE BAKE BAKE the meat, avoid getting it greasy, no deep frying, no frying in oils/batters. Use seasonings instead. SO much healthier.
So I know that is a lot to think about and process, but start slow and work your way up. I know it isn't easy when you have a FULL DAY that ends up being a 18 hour day of kids, working, church, school, spouse, PTA, and any other obligation, just keep this stuff in mind when you do your grocery shopping. Little steps make BIG differences.
This may not work for everyone, I tried it and so far it has worked. This could just be a mind-over-matter thing BUT who knows.
Also, buying "fat-free" mayonaise or mustards or dressings is BAD BAD BAD. Always go for the "lite". The "fat-free" is actually worse for you than just the regular product. Weird right. I guess in the "fat-free" product there are other additives to make up for the lack of flavor after the fatties have been taken out. But the lite keeps a balance of flavor and nutrients without the major harmful fatties, obviously you have to eat it in moderation so keep that in mind! Don't load up your sandwich or salad with dressing, be conservative on that!
Snacks: Yep... here we go... the death of the snack world!
Give up cookies, chips, candy, etc. Replace with apples, celery, carrots, cold cereal, and pretty much any fruit/vegetable. It will be hard at first, that is obvious. BUT after you get into a routine of having a small helping of a fruit/veggie you will adjust quickly and then you won't really want all the sweets.
Obviously soda is a no no. But IF you have to drink it, drink diet. These days the diet flavor really isn't as bad as it used to be. So remember DIET soda. Otherwise water is the best option. Crystal light came HIGHLY recommended. Your body is at LEAST 70% water and keeping yourself hydrated with water actually helps with weightloss. Drinking a glass of water BEFORE a meal helps with your body over-eating and feeling like you are hungry. So remember for each meal:
~Glass of water before
~Only one helping... no 2nds or 3rds
~Sweet fruit after words... it triggers the brain to say the meal is complete
SNACKS:
No candy/sweets
No soda
IF you drink soda make it DIET
Moderate portions of veggies or fruit
LOTS of water or even crystal light
LASTLY compliments of the personal trainer I am working with (I know... I have dropped a lot of info on you today BUT I promise this is the last part for today.....) Exercise. BOOOOOO exercise. Blehhhhh.
Cardio is your best friend. It is the hardest part of physical activity BUT the most promising and the most helpful.
Start slow... I am starting with 30 minutes of it 4 times a week. BUT that is just for me. Set your own pace. Don't kill yourself the fist couple weeks. In my apartment club house there is a treadmill, elliptical, stair-master, and a bike. So I rotate one each of the 4 times I work out. I start day 1 with the treadmill. 30 minutes, level 4 with a small incline. Day 2 is the elliptical- 30 minutes at a resistance 4, day 3 stair-master at a level 3 (that sucker is hard!) and day 4 is the cycle at resistance of about 5 for thirty minutes. It is hard, BUT worth it.
NOW, not everyone has any of that equipment, WELL here is the solution, walking in place works wonders, if you have a small step-stool do 30 minutes (or however much time you set aside for that) or even if you just go for walks around the block, in a gym, or at a church. But make sure you are doing it briskly. If you just sort of mull around it won't work, you need to get that blood flowing. If you are getting your cardio up it means you are burning the fat out and the muscle is getting healthier. If you want to wear ankle weights or carry some light free-weights that is even better! I am going to try carrying free weights while I do the treadmill just to keep my arms busy and get the cardio really up there.
Well there ya have it folks... you all know what I know now... Sooooo comment, try it, pass it on, share your tips and advice, and here is a happy CHEERS to the beginning... of the end!
**Coming next:
The actual formula for the BMI for both male AND female, my progress on my working out, my work out calender (yep... I am showing ya my planner) and more tips from the nutritionist, trainer and the nurse!
I have also attached a pic of my big 245 lb self. EW right? Well.... let's hope that is what I will be getting away from! Thanks everyone for tagging along on this journey with me!
