Has anybody else who's ever had to lose 40-60 lbs...ever found that one week you lose nothing, then all of a sudden right when you are getting frustrated you lose 5 lbs in a few days? Its really bizarre because my workout habits and eating have been pretty constant. The only difference is that I didn't do any drinking last weekend but I didn't imagine it would make THAT much difference.

Lot of wasted calories in alcoholic beverages. And, one's eating habits tend to deteriorate a bit when buzzed.

Beyond that, though, don't worry. I lost about 40 pounds a few years ago, primarily between lifestyle and diet change. Note, muscle mass weighs more per unit volume than flab, so if you're working out, you're working a bit at cross purposes for just losing wieght. I used to weigh myself daily, but made a point of not making changes based on single numbers. If your overall numbers, month to month, are going in the right direction, I wouldn't worry about daily or even weekly variations in rate of change. Keep your eye on the big picture and not on small incremental changes one way or the other.

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It takes character to win when you get there.

Drinking makes an absolutely HUGE difference. Anything that puts excessive sugar into your body will wreak havoc on weight loss.

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A 5.5% beer has about 150 calories per 12 oz serving. Think about that when you knock back 3 of them. (Or, if you're like me, and you drink 10% beers, when you knock back a 12 oz.)

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Drinking does make a huge difference, also the time of day when you weigh yourself can as well. For me my weight would fluctuate as much as 5 lbs. depending on when I weighed myself. The morning is the "best" time, but as long as you are consistent as to what time of day you should be good. Other than that listen to Sutz, I lost almost 30 lbs. in a month and the majority of it was during the first, second, and fourth weeks. I actually gained a pound in the third week without any changes to my diet or exercise, but it evened out over the fourth.

http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-lo ... y-fat.html

Your body does weird things, a lot of which are water related. I know I can fluctuate ~4 a day based on water and what food is in my body, and that's not uncommon. True fat loss will be measured over the course of several weeks though, so don't let a 1 week difference tell you much one way or another.

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Thanks everyone. I'm at 227 now...want to get to 200 by June and the commencement of summer. I started out at 285 back on November 10th.

Just being able to feel my abs and being able to actually do hard cardio again is so gratifying. Doing weights as well, and trying to either increase slightly each week what I'm lifting or maintain while losing weight.

I think it will take me getting to 185 to really have a 6 pack again - but for right now under 200 is my goal and will reassess once I reach that.

That's awesome Riggo. Dropping 58 pounds is no small feat, and you should be proud of the accomplishment. Hell, I felt like a champ for dropping 10 lbs recently. (Over the past 2.5 years, my weight went from 205 to 229. Down to 219 and trying to get back to the 205 mark.)

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Thanks...and good job on you for putting on the brakes for weight gain earlier than I did. I'm 35 now and I am starting to realize that its easier to maintain good habits when fit versus trying to cut a large amount of weight.

Someone told me its 70% diet and 30% working out...and I'm really starting to believe that. It will become even more important as I age and having high intensity workouts becomes more difficult to do and recover from as quickly.

The way I look at it: You can weigh whatever you want based on diet alone, but working out with determine what you look like and how healthy you are.

And, if you are serious about strength training, I can't recommend Wendler's 5/3/1 program enough:

http://www.t-nation.com/free_online_art ... e_strength

Follow the program (I've done Boring but Big for almost 6 months) and you will get stronger every week.

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Nice thanks! I want to get down to a certain weight/body fat percentage, then really work at building some muscle properly thereafter.

I definitely want to challenge myself to accomplish a tough overall strength long-term goal when I start really working at building strength though...something like a one arm pullup or being able to bench 1.5 times my bodyweight. Then make a roadmap for how to train to get there.

I know for myself personally that when I don't set very specific goals...I tend to drift more towards the couch and one day away from the gym becomes 2, 2 becomes a week, a week a month...then things go downhill.

I would second this. I've been competitive in strength "sports" for many years and still use a modified version of a combination of 5x5 and 5/3/1 at least 6 months out of the year.

If you're REALLY serious about strength training, find a facility filled with guys stronger than you and start training with them.



Remember that there is NOTHING more potent at burning fat than LEAN BODY MASS. My fitness instuctor wife is a perfect example of this. She, considering her profession, has always been in pretty good shape. Once she started adding resistance training (big compound movements such as squats/deadlifts/snatches) to her weekly routine, her level of ripped has gone through the roof. Mass is almost equal to before, but composition is COMPLETELY different.

I think you guys have it completely flipped. You can get the body you want with enough exercise and have horrible nutrition.

http://www.nytimes.com/1995/11/22/sport ... -says.html

Russian Ice skater died at 28 from clogged arteries. There might have been some history in his family but I can almost guarantee that diet had more to do with it. You can be "thin" and even "fit" but if you have fatty buildups around your organs and inside your arteries you'll have heart disease by your 50th birthday.

Less meat, more veggies, less oils (even "heart healthy" oils).

Exercise is still a must if you want to really keep the body healthy but be very careful thinking that you're doing fine if you've reached the weight you want and you are in good shape.

Now before you lash out at me on this, I don't think we're at odds at all in fact I think we're basically on the same side. I agree that if you really restrict your diet (Fat free Vegan for example) you can weigh whatever you want on diet alone.

I'm just cautioning against the other extreme where guys think they are fit and in shape and therefore they are healthy.

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President of the Perfect Parents Society - est. 2013

Professional athletes shouldn't be included in these discussions. None of us have the time or resources to out-exercise poor nutrition.

When I said "healthy" I was referring to muscle mass, bone density, mobility, etc

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P90X baby.. worked for me.. did it for 2 years, was in better shape than i was in highschool.. the plyometrics and strengthening/cardio excercises are hard but will git you in shape.. oh by the way.. P90X is pure hell in a box...getting ready to start it again, get in shape for summer.

one more thing.. drink a ton of water, you'll drop 10lbs doing that alone.. more you drink the less your body will store.. i drank close to a gallon a day, that's all i could stand, some drink more...

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I was just referring to him as an extreme example. I know plenty of folks with a high metabolism who can get away with eating garbage and not look unhealthy.

Eat real food. If we stop supporting the industry that feeds us pigslop maybe it will go away.

Getting a bit off topic though. I've been doing a lot of research on nutrition and health in my own weight loss quest. I'm down from 255 to 220 making an eventual stop somewhere between 165 and 180.

Keep up the good fight Riggo.

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I actually found it to be rather ...ahem... mild. Works up a good sweat to be sure though.

I was ONLY commenting on strength training. I have no use for 'weight loss', which is such can of worms term to begin with.

Well, when I'm talking about weight loss, I'm talking about reduction in the general fatness of my person. I understand that muscle is heavier than fat. I have changed my diet, and not temporarily, to achieve true healthy weight loss.

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President of the Perfect Parents Society - est. 2013

you must be/stay in tremendous shape.. it kicked my tail for the first 3-4 months.

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