Do you want to be thin? Or healthy?

SO... My name is FatMan Do...

Not too long ago I had 265 lbs of fat hanging over my belt, and I was huffing and puffing for air as I climbed the 2 steps into my house.

I decided that I'd had enough and I wanted to lose some weight...  I became fixated on LOSING WEIGHT!
I HAD TO LOSE WEIGHT! 
DEAR GOD WHY IS THE SCALE NOT MOVING FAST ENOUGH!!!!

It was like that... and I went out to my garage every most mornings for 6-9 weeks and I jumped and squatted and lifted little dumbbells. I ate salads and starved myself and I lost weight. That scale moved from 265 to 240... Then to 235... 230... all the way down to 225.

Holy. Shit. I was awesome. I thought that was some pretty cool stuff right there... BUT... tadaa... it all (Not all, but most) came back.

Why did it come back?

Because I wasn't smart about it. Using the bathroom scale to measure of how "healthy" I am is dumb. I didn't change my habits. I didn't add muscle to replace the fat I was losing... I simply worked the fat, and some of the muscle, out of my body in an ever maddening struggle to become lighter... and then I thought that weight would magically stay away because I was naive and didn't want to work out in the garage anymore.

I'd like to now draw your attention to WEIGHT... This is Kelsey Wells of Instagram fame...

Kelsey learned the difference between "thin" and "healthy"

She shows that you can actually replace fat with muscle and be thinner... while weighing the same. Fat weighs more than muscle. 5 lbs of FAT is easily twice as big as 5 lbs of muscle. So if you wait for it... if you bide your time at the gym or in your garage - while eating right at home - you can replace your fat with muscle and be AWESOME.

You don't have to just lose weight. Yes, losing weight feels awesome... but replacing your fat with muscle is even better. Teach yourself how to eat well, exercise right, and be good to your body... it takes time. 

Until Next Time - Muscles are good. Use them. 

You are what you eat.

How was your weekend?

*waits for answer*

Great!

Moving on....

Let's talk about diets... and by "diet" I mean - What you eat breaks down and becomes your body. Let that sink in... you LITERALLY are what you eat.. If you eat nothing but Tacos - you're a taco. And that might actually work for some people. But eating and dieting is not a "one size fits all" kind of thing in my opinion.

So... are you "big boned"? Mediterranean? Tall and skinny? V-Shaped? High Blood pressured???  We are not all the same. Let's be honest - not all of us have the same genetic makeup. Some people have ancestors who probably ate nothing but nuts and berries... some of us might have come from a colder region and nothing but fish and seal meat!(?)... But over time and generations and more time - those groups of people would tend to make better use of their food sources. Thus - a Keto diet for an Endomorph who puts on and stores fat easily would be good... a high carb for a very athletic person who is constantly on the move would be good.

The point is - you have to see what you are, how you operate, and what you want to get out of it.  The "Everyone needs to eat _______" method of blanket statement dieting is a terrible thing.  As are most blanket statements and ideas.

I've tried to the low-fat/no-fat thing. I've tried the "eat what you want but count your calories" thing. And I've tried to standard "60/20/20 Carbs to Protein to Fat" thing... And while all of these have their merits - they didn't work for me all that well. So, after looking around and reading and then trying it out - I've found that the lower Carb intake approach works very well for me. I'm ingesting 196g of Protein every day 93g of Carbs and 83g of Fat... And Since July I have dropped inches while putting on muscle and I feel great.

You can diet or you can exercise and you'll see results... but if you "Diet AND exercise" together - you'll see even BETTER results. And in less time.

So - There ya go.

Until next time - Eat well and lift heavy things.

So... WTF is a Macro??

Buckle-up, readers... it's a long one... a little "light reading" before the weekend.

I have spent the last... 3 months or so FOREVER reading up on nutrition. Words like MACROS! and Keto! Low-Carb, high-fat, SUPER PROTEIN!!!  All get tossed around like we're in some sort of political commercial for food. From what I gather - you can basically lose weight by doing about 8,000 different things and nobody has 1 specific way of doing things - or at least no good way that they’ll all agree on. 

But the thing I've been trying to wrap my head around is the idea of:  “What the Fuck is a macro and why should I care?”

Before we dive into that - We will need to figure out a few things about ourselves first. Like - what body type am I?

This is GROSSLY oversimplified... but it'll work for now

Ectomorph - Tall and lanky, difficult to gain fat
Mesomorph - Lean, gains muscle easily
Endomorph - Big, straight bodied/pear shaped, gains fat easily - difficult to gain muscle

I am 100% Endomorph... I'm a big rectangle with a head on it.

Endomorphs store fat easily and should avoid carbs like pasta and white bread. Luckily I'm already a whole grain person. So a low-carb diet with some whole grains is perfect!

But, aren't carbs energy? If you're not eating carbs for energy... what does that leave? 

Protein... and Fat.

Calories come from the macronutrients (and alcohol) - I need to find the appropriate ratio of macronutrients to support my end goal of calorie intake vs overall plan. Those macronutrients are: Carbs, Fats, and Proteins.

• One gram of protein yields 4 calories.
• One gram of carbohydrate yields 4 calories.
• One gram of fat yields 9 calories.
• One gram of alcohol yields 7 calories.

Fat is an essential nutrient that our bodies require to live; it assists in vitamin absorption, hormone regulation, brain function, and more.

Protein intake will help build muscle and/or prevent muscle loss if you are in a calorie deficit.  It controls appetite and staves off hunger better than fats or carbs as it causes you to feel full longer.

Carbs are stored in the liver, brain, blood and muscles as glycogen. Our bodies use carbohydrates for energy.

So - there it is. Holy trinity of body requirements (at least the ones that aren’t water, sunlight, and oxygen)... BUT... in which quantities do I eat these things?  33-33-33? 40-20-40? 60-20-20??? 

OH GOD!! SO MANY OPTIONS!!! WHAT DO I DO!!?

I have to ask myself - “Self, what is your goal?” - Then I whine about how I want to eat ice cream and pizza and magically get a 6-pack.... BUT... then it turns out my ACTUAL goal is to lose fat, maintain muscle, and not become a beefy muscle-head.

Sounds easy enough... right?

Based on what I have researched - my body weight, age and overall daily activity level should require around 2,362 calories for daily maintenance - and to lose the weight I'd like to lose, I'd need to cut that down to 1,862 calories a day... but what about the almighty MACRO breakdown? 

The “If It Fits Your Macros” people are all over the place... Some say you can eat as much as you want - so long as it is within your Macro range. Others say that everything that enters your body must be macro-perfect...  There is “Low-Carb” “Moderate Carb” “Ratios for cutting” and “Ratios for bulking”... I mean, seriously, there are a lot of different rations and everyone I’ve talked to has given me their opinion on what I should eat. And while I do appreciate their opinions - I’m not looking to bulk up and I’m not looking to get “shredded” - I just want to drop some fat, maintain and build lean muscle, and not die going up the stairs.

So - I’m choosing a low-carb approach with a high protein and higher fat content for my daily macro counts. This is, in theory, a macronutrient ratio that will help me to maximize fat loss while not sacrificing muscle growth.  Will it work?  Fuck if I know!

For a 1,862 calorie/day diet - I am planning on actually running this with 40% Protein, 40% Fats and only 20% Carbs... So, on a daily average I’ll get: 186g of protein, 83g of fat and 93g of carbs...

Which is a pain in the ass to try and do. I’ve spent hours adding food to MyFitnessPal in various configurations and amounts trying to find some way to remain fed - while still meeting these “MACROS” - I also feel that whenever someone says that word it should be with jazzhands or something - and I know it seems counterintuitive to eat more fat, but it works. When your body lacks carbs, which it stores as fat, it burns fat. So - you give it fat to burn to basically "teach" your body to burn fat. This is Ketosis - the state in which your body burns fat and releases Ketones into your blood.  Ketones are the byproducts of the body breaking down fat for energy that occurs when carbohydrate intake is low.

And to date - it's actually been working.

HOWEVER... LOW CARB DIETS RESULTING IN KETOSIS WILL RESULT IN HALITOSIS... Like... seriously. You'll need some gum.

ANYWAY... I think I’ve found a good starting point. My dietary needs for the coming weeks are being looked at... and my hope is, by the start of April, to be at or below 220 lbs... 

Until Next Time - EAT MORE PROTEIN!!! 

So sick and tired of being sick and tired...

Laziness is a hard habit to break... 

You have to recognize that laziness and procrastination are destructive to your word. When you take on a task you make a promise to somebody (perhaps just yourself, but somebody) that you will complete that task. But being lazy means you are breaking your word... That’s not bad, or wrong, it just is.

You can't fix a problem with good intentions. You can't get healthy just by not wanting to be fat and unhealthy anymore. You have to get up. You have to move.

I'm really sick of being fat and out of shape. I'm sick of being lazy. I'm sick of being sick of it all... I've got more false-starts than I care to. I'm sick of the amount of time I spend on the couch...

Today is the end of 7 weeks of healthier eating - healthier living - and a better me. 

If you're at the beginning of your journey - Make today DAY ONE! And take as many DAY ONEs as you need until you find that motivation and that drive. Dig down, dig deep, get up and GET MOVING!!

Until Next time - GET UP!

Getting fat on Fat Tuesday

Ah... Mardi Gras... or "Fat Tuesday" in the vernacular... is the day before Ash Wednesday and the start of the Catholic Lenten Season of fasting and something... Sorry, I'm not Catholic so I don't know what all goes on other than a lot of commercials for fish and a lot of people swearing off of sweets and or Facebook until Easter.

Anyway.... I DO love traditions, though. And I'm a sucker for sugary cakes. So, I bring in a King Cake every year on Fat Tuesday and share... and I ate a piece and it WAS AMAZING.  It was, in one bite, more sugar than I've consumed in a month. Which means I've totally blown my carb intake for the day week... but it was good - And totally worth it.

But that's the point of my post today - It is totally acceptable to occasionally indulge in your sweet tooth.

Let me say that again. Slower. And with emphasis on the proper words:

It is totally acceptable to occasionally indulge in your sweet tooth.

This means that, from time to time, you can eat that piece of cake or chocolate and not freak out about it. As long as it is A: OCCASIONALLY and B: In moderation. It does not mean "Oh man, what a fun workout - I'm going to eat this whole cake today because I earned it." or "I've lost 1 lb this month - I've earned a 3,000 calorie Frappaccino every day this week."  It DOES mean that once every 3 weeks or so - I'll eat something that totally blows my calorie and carb count out for a day... and that's it. I'll enjoy it, it's good, and then it's gone. Allow me to think back to that post where I talk about it NOT being a diet and being a decision to live a better/healthier life... That's it! You can be healthy and still eat sugar from time to time.

Unless you're allergic to sugar - and that would just be awful.



So - there ya go, kids!  Enjoy your Fat Tuesday... but remember that it's one day - and next week you're back to FIT Tuesday

Getting off of you A** and doing something...

Yesterday was Sunday - which is the first night of my weekly gym trips, and I... didn't want to go. True story.

I spent all afternoon on Sunday playing with my kids on the floor building Lego castles, space ships, and boats... and I was having fun. Then I spent some quality time with my wife - and I, to put it simply, just lacked the motivation to leave all of that and go to the gym. I was too comfortable. And that, like any excuse, isn't a good one.

But - my wife is an excellent supporter in this endeavor of mine and urged me on towards the door and the awesome pain of Chest Day awaiting me at the YMCA.  I also have a good workout partner who keeps me accountable - even on dreaded LEG DAY!!!

And the thing is - much like my normal, social anxiety - Once I was there and doing it, I was happy. It's the getting up and going that is my stumbling point.

And that's the problem with a lot of things in life - finding the deep down, innate desire to get up, out of our comfort-zone or routine and try new things or do something difficult. It's absolutely easier to stay home, take "fat-burners", eat pizza and dream about being healthy than it is to get up, get dressed, go to the gym when it's 17 degrees out, and work hard for 90 minutes with various heavy objects.

Don't get discouraged. I know many people are just like me - impatient. Didn't see any results in 12 days? Might as well stop going to the gym!  - That's not how this works. That's not how ANY of this works. It takes 3 weeks before you might even feel a change in any aspect of your personal health or behavior, let along see one. It takes 21 days (I'm told) to form a habit. And to make a habit you need a routine. And that's why Sunday sucks so much for me. Friday and Saturday are rest days and Sunday comes and I am still resting. But that'll change - and having good reminders from family and friends helps - as does the reward of how good I feel after the gym. Well, except on the days when I go and I'm really dehydrated and I cramp up really bad in my sleep - but that's more of a personal problem LOL.

SO - go out there, form a routine, make a habit - AND BECOME THE BEST VERSION OF YOURSELF!!!!  Even if it takes 6 months, 6 years, 20 years, or 40 years!

And today - we weigh in

Well, good morning, Internet!

Today is my (self-mandated) official weigh-in day. Every Wednesday morning I wake up, have a cup of coffee, a glass of water, take a shower, and weigh-in.

Since June I've come down 15 lbs from 243!!!

It's been an up and down battle, but I'm happy right now....

Initially - back in 2014 when I looked at myself and said "Wow... you've let yourself go" I was 265 lbs.  Literally the heaviest I've ever been. 

This is me... at 265 lbs.
Nov 2014

My overall goal is to just get down to a size that looks healthy, allows me to live a better life, and a shape resembling "fit-ish".  I have no desire to be super buff and look like like a body-builder. I just want to be healthier. My goal weight is 210 lbs... which means I have 18 lbs to go. I'm pretty sure I can do it.  And if I end up only making it to to 220 or 215 - but I'm happy and healthy - I'll be okay with that too.

It's better to stop thinking of going to the gym as a "weight loss" method. It's not. Going to the gym is an active lifestyle choice that results in a change in your body. In some cases you lose weight - in some you gain weight. Either way should result in a happier, healthier you as long as you put in the time and effort.

The same goes for eating. I'm not on a diet. I am not diet-ING. I am just eating differently than before. I'm limiting the types and quantities of food I intake on a daily basis... again, this is more of a change in lifestyle than a "diet."

So - there ya go. My rant on weigh-in day!!

Hope you all have a good Wednesday