one reason to lose weight

[El Chivo]

on Memorial Day I topped out at a disgusting 190 lbs, so decided to lose some weight. I had trouble keeping my balance when climbing around. It was difficult to bend in the middle to pick things up. Something had to be done. I cut out the bread and sugar and ate spinach and got down to 165.

So today I was packing for my hunting trip, and decided to weigh myself with my full pack, including water, food, knives, meat bags, binos, ammo, etc. The total came to 180. Add 6.5 lbs for my handi-rifle and scope, and 3 lbs for boots, and I'm going out fully equipped yet carrying no more than I used to just to get out of bed.

I'm still a little out of shape, but I'm sure my bones will appreciate the lighter load this year.

[Borregos]

I wish I could top out at 190

[madman4570]

Excellent!
Great willpower Sir!
Now that its off for ya the trick is, (dont let it come back ) Congrats!

[JReed]

Outstanding work. When is your trip and what are you after?

[Griff]

Yep, @ 190 I'd be approaching my target... still got 30 to go... and a few more! I'll get there.

[Markbo]

I got as high as 260 lbs a few years ago. Got that same disgusted with myself attitude and now down to a much more comfortable 215. I'd like to be at 200, but I can do everything I want to do at 215 without hinderance. Now stamina is another thing... but that goes away with age anyway.

[dr walker]

Congratulations on dropping the extra weight.
As an adult I have been as heavy as 250 and as light as 155. When I am injury free and running or cycling daily my weight stays about 185. When I am in recovery mode and can not put in the miles I balloon up a bit.

[Pete44ru]

I'm too short for my weight - I should really be 9 feet 7 inches tall.

.

[TedH]

If 190 is disgusting, you must be about 4 feet tall!

Seriously though, congratulations on your results. It's not easy, and gets harder the older we get. I hit 210 last year and felt the same disgust with myself. I got serious and in three months time I lost 36 lbs. I've put a few back on since my low, but I don't have too hard a time maintaining myself around 180.

[madman4570]

Dont know if this is true or not, but I remember back some years ago a heart doctor at the gym I attend saying what you go by----it isnt the weight(lbs)/isnt the height(inches) it is the measured pant inseam of one leg in relationship to your measured waist..

He said everything is in relationship to your core section of your body(the other type measurements have too many variables)??

So, lets just say you have a 32" inseam-----your waist(for a fit male) it would be 32"
He said if your way underweight this will show as well as overweight.

It is funny though because that is right about where it works out for me and I keep myself at (only I go by waist size)when the Levis blue jeans start to get tight in the waist I just scale back before a problem occurs!

[salvo]

Way to go El Chevo! I hit 232 and felt the same way. Just got under 200 and have about 15 to go! Once I hit 210 my weight loss really slowed, but I'm pushing on, if I can loose 1 pound every 1-2 week's I'm happy.

[gak]

+1 to the 4' comment -- 190?? Congrats, but @ 6'0", 190 is my (ideal) target at this point!

[Ysabel Kid]

Congrats! I need to drop at least 10 pounds, but would be happier dropping 25. I've been up to 210 and as low as 147 during my adult life, the latter when I was running all the time over a decade ago. My "natural" weight seems to be in the 190-200 lb range (it's where I always seem to snap back to). My back issues late last year going into this year put a real crimp into any kind of exercising. I recently started using the treadmill again, and feel much better for it. Cut out most diet soda (I used to drink 6-8 of them a day), replacing it with water. Haven't lost anything but I feel better!

Don't like the inseam idea. I'm a touch over 6 foot (or was before the surgery!), but long-waisted with shorter legs (31 inch inseam). Doubt I could ever get back to a 30 inch waist!

[olyinaz]

I'm too short for my weight - I should really be 9 feet 7 inches tall.

LOL!! Yes, me too!

Congrats to the OP for dropping the weight. Gives us all some encouragement.

Oly

[2ndovc]

Good on ya!

I've been up and down as long as I can remember.
Recently I weighed in at the Doc's office at a supprising 278!!
Holy Moly!! Even though I'm 6'2" that's obnoxious!

I've been working on it since then. Though I don't have a good scale
I'm down two notches on my belt and I'm getting into clothes I
haven't seen in a couple years.

Now if I could only cut out the beer!

jb

[El Chivo]

Well mobility sure came in handy today, in the Los Padres behind Santa Barbara. First I drove my 25 year old Volvo sedan up to the top of the Sierra Madres to where you can see the ocean. I probably lost a pound of sweat right there worrying about my oil pan. Although I only bottomed out once - where some j*#% was parking where the road was easily passable, making everyone else go through a washout.

Once you get to the top though, it's a super view. At night the stars are all out and brighter than I've ever seen them, and you can even see shooting stars every few minutes. Sea air, not too hot, not too cool.

Too many hunters, and no one I talked to had seen a legal deer. I took a firebreak at the top of the ridge for a while and had my hopes up. After those were dashed, I took a ridge down from the road. Most of the hunters drive back and forth on the road, hoping a buck will show up somewhere down below.

I didn't see one and only saw old sign. I think you need lots of experience to figure out the Los Padres. If you take the Angeles and multiply by 4 you've pretty much got the idea. I saw some interesting canyons with water and trees at the bottom but I would need a helicopter rescue to get back out of there.

Week after next I leave for the Los Padres in SLO county, which is much easier walking. Rounded hills, firm footing, easy brush. I usually go about four miles out and back when I'm there. I've only seen does there, except for my very first trip when there was a fork buck standing in the shade of a tree, thinking if he stood still no one would see him. At the time I didn't know it was deer season up there and didn't have an A-zone tag.

I also want to talk about my nifty cartridge belt. On Memorial Day I found this black velcro band lying by the side of the road. I decided to pick it up and keep in as it might come in handy, although I couldn't think of a use for it. This season, using a Handi-rifle for the first time, I needed a way to carry a few rounds up front to load quickly. Normally I put four rounds in the mag, but the limit here is 1 of course and I want to carry it broken open, ready to load, instead of loaded.

I purchased Federal Premium ammo and found they come in two packs of 10, and each pack has a slot for a strap. The cartridges fit very well, there's a final "snap" when they lock in. But they're easy to take out, too. As you can see, I used the velcro strap tight around my belly to hold cartridges up where I can reach them quickly. This worked very well, I hardly knew it was there, and didn't lose any rounds.

elchivo3.jpg

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[madman4570]

El Chivo, thats a great pic of ya, and you do look fit as a fiddle!
Excellent job!

[Markbo]

Well whoda thunk it!? El Chivo is really Will Ferrell!

[TNBigBore]

My skeleton weighs more than 190....I could stand to lose a few lbs as well, but my target weight is about 255. I am 6'5" and have a very large build though.

Congratulations on your weight loss. I know you feel better.

[stew71]

on Memorial Day I topped out at a disgusting 190 lbs....

Man, I haven't weighed 190 since my high school freshman football days. Lately, I've dropped 30 lbs and I'm down to a much slimmer 250. Shooting for a skinny 230.

[Old Time Hunter]

Man, I haven't weighed 190 since my high school freshman football days. Lately, I've dropped 30 lbs and I'm down to a much slimmer 250. Shooting for a skinny 230.

I'm with you! I have been on 1500 calorie a day(Monday thru Friday, 2000 on weekends) diet since March. I run one mile three times a week (averaging 12 minutes per running mile, then a mile walk down) and lift dead weights (25# dumbells-in two sets of 25 curls, 20 tri's, 40 wrist curls, and 20 butterflies. 100# barbell in one set of 20 dead lifts, 15 curls, 20 bench presses, and 20 leg rises) three times a week. All I have managed to lose so far is TWO and a HALF pounds! And my BMI is 31.7..or stage 1 obese. So how does a 56 year-old guy lose weight? I should be down to 200-210, but after five months of busting butt, all I have to show for it is a pulse rate of 48-52 at rest(nominal) and up to 70 when worked up compared to a 68-75 pulse rate at rest and over 90 when worked up back in February.

[ceb]

I heard Dr. Oz say your waist size should be no more that half your height. At my current waist size, I think it might be easier to grow to that 7' height than lose the weight. At 5' 8" and 260 I really need to get motivated. Weighed 176 when I got married 35yrs ago, and its been up and up since. Was over 300 at one time and would be tickeled to see 200 again.

[buckeyeshooter]

Dont know if this is true or not, but I remember back some years ago a heart doctor at the gym I attend saying what you go by----it isnt the weight(lbs)/isnt the height(inches) it is the measured pant inseam of one leg in relationship to your measured waist..

He said everything is in relationship to your core section of your body(the other type measurements have too many variables)??

So, lets just say you have a 32" inseam-----your waist(for a fit male) it would be 32"
He said if your way underweight this will show as well as overweight.

It is funny though because that is right about where it works out for me and I keep myself at (only I go by waist size)when the Levis blue jeans start to get tight in the waist I just scale back before a problem occurs!

guess I need to buy longer pants!!

[quietman]

A couple of ideas for those struggling.

Look at the Body for Life program. It works. It will get you in shape for hunting season too. Know several people that always complained about not being able to lose weight that bought the book, did the program, and were amazed at the results.
Body for Life book

Also, if you're going for weight loss and lifting weights, shoot for a waist size, not a body weight. People who've never lifted before and picked it up as part of their fitness program will shoot for an old body weight and not hit it because they are putting on muscle they didn't have in the past. This leads to unnecessary frustration.

Good luck

[Malamute]

Is the BMI the one that says for a given height you should weigh X amount? My doc said it wasnt a very good guideline because of different builds. He said the calculation of body fat was better, done by the water displacement tank/weight ratio was more accurate, or the caliper pinch for fat that some spa's use. I'm thick, but don't have as much body fat as I look like, I can't float worth a hoot. I checked at the spa, they said I was at the low end of the normal scale, @ 5' 9-1/2"/195 lbs. I've made 210, and don't feel as good, I'd be happy back about 190-195.

One thing I've noticed, when doing hard work, I can lose size (waist) quickly, but not much weight, the fat turns quickly into muscle. Lost 2" off my waist, lost about 8 lbs, and gained 1 1/2" on my chest in 2 weeks on a tough job we were pushing hard on.

[Old Time Hunter]

Also, if you're going for weight loss and lifting weights, shoot for a waist size, not a body weight. People who've never lifted before and picked it up as part of their fitness program will shoot for an old body weight and not hit it because they are putting on muscle they didn't have in the pas

I was a strenuous weight lifter from my early twenties until my mid forties when I started to get frustrated as my waist started to expand even though I was exercising two to four hours a day. At forty I weighed 225#, had a 32" waist, 18" biceps, 18" neck, and a 52" expanded chest. By the time I was forty-five, my weight ballooned to 235#, my waist was 36", my biceps dropped to 17.5", my neck stayed the same, but my chest went down to 50" expanded..even though I was still following the same regimen. So under the advice of my Doc, I became more aerobic, joined a couple of basketball leagues, started running, and only lifted light weights a couple of times a week. At forty-nine years, two months...I had a heart attack while at the gym playing basketball and at that time, my weight was the lowest it had been since high school, 190#. My wife recently pulled out a picture of me from the Thanksgiving prior to my heart attack, I looked absolutely sick. My stomach was invereted and I looked as though I had just walked out of concentration camp. I have always had a body structure with very broad, heavy shoulders, and a large chest. SO maybe body structure might have more to do with it than just weight. 'Cause it darn near killed me trying to look skinny. 'Course over the next five years or so, my weight ballooned to 240# and I am trying to get down to 210# or so...but at the rate I'm going it will take me until I'm dead from old age.

[Markbo]

That exercising will kill ya'!

Not to sound trite, but it is really simple. Not EASY, but simple. Eat less, exercise more.

[El Chivo]

Somewhere I read about how many calories you burn when you exercise, and it wasn't much compared to the effort required. Plus, we have to eat a lot afterwards and that negates the weight loss. Exercising is good for you but seems to me to be irrelevant to weight loss in the short term. I don't have time to do a lot of exercise, and I still lost weight because of the energy it takes to get through the day. The days I took hikes, I didn't lose any weight.

My first goal was to lose the fat, and cutting out the sugars tends to do that. Once the blood sugar drops down below a certain level, it triggers the use of stored fat for energy, all day long.

I mostly ate meat and vegetables, which tend to rebuild the body but not raise blood sugar. After that, I usually rested, as opposed to exercising.

It's surprising how little food you need. My daily goal was to stay under 1000 calories a day, and I usually had a hamburger which is about half of that. After that I'd make a small bag of nuts last all day, and drink a lot of water. The game was to try to get through the next hour or so. One or two peanuts will do that for you. Funny thing is, now that I got just under my target weight of 170, I'm sticking to the same regimen more or less.

Once the weight is gone, that's the time to exercise, and it's easier without all that weight bearing down on your system.

[piller]

I have lost 30 pounds since March just by switching to plain coffee and water while at work. The sodas did make me gain weight. I am down to 220, and shooting for 200. I am 5'10" and would have to lose muscle to get below 200. My legs are still pretty strong from the 3 years of U.S. Army Infantry. I still cannot pull the average pair of slacks up to put on socks as the cuff doesn't fit over my calf. If I can get my waist down some and my upper body in shape I will be better off for it. When you work 65 to 70 hours per week and every single minute of that on your feet, it is tough to feel like exercising when you get home.