The Shoe has dropped. I am too Fat.

[Runnriottt]

For the first time in my 501st days I have been denied an official gig for I am too fat. That will wake you up a tad huh? This was a TV Spot, so they can do that kinda thing. Normal trooping? No.. but official LFL stuff... yep.

 

I wanted to be mad... Then I wanted to be sad... Then I wanted to be angry... But you know what? Screw it loose the weight.

 

Currently I am 240 pounds. I need to loose at least 30. So I am starting the diet and work out stuff. I guess I am posting this to motivate myself publicly. Peer pressure is a wonderful thing!

 

I hate lifting weights... There so heavy! But oh well. No pain no gain right?

[Daetrin[Admin]]

You go Nathan!

 

You know, I used to work out religiously 3x/week and was at 10% body fat. I haven't worked out in 4 years, but what I did start doing was one set of pushups in the morning. Started with 25, am up to 45. My point is that even a little bit helps. Just walking 30 minutes 3x/week will do a lot for you brother.

 

Also, stop drinking soda, fast food, and really work to cut portion size and eat more veggies. It can be a struggle once you hit your 30's and more so when you hit the 40's, but alas we're no longer at the age where we can eat a whole pizza with chips and drink a quart of Mountain Dew and not gain a pound.

 

You can do it Nathan - I'm rooting for you

 

* btw, I think you'll find your libido will go up as the weight comes off. Just sayin'..

[TK_LEPER]

You show 'em Nate!

 

Little advice though... Don't waste your time lifting weights, unless you want to be more muscular. Just run it off my friend, trust me. You will burn more fat doing a cardio-related exercise. The more you sweat, the more you burn. And watch your diet, soda is one of the worst. But I wish you all the best. YOU CAN DOO-EET!!

Edited May 2, 2010 by jawa001

[bluehickey]

I hear ya Nathan, I had my appendix out around Christmas and was laid up recovering, so I put on some pounds. I noticed that being heavier made it so my thigh pieces couldn't come up as high as they should. I really didn't like how that looked.

I'll tell you what has worked for me: I've given up sweets and candy altogether. I know that sounds a bit extreme, and it is, but I came to my senses and realized that I was eating candy, ice cream, brownies, cake etc. mainly as an emotional escape from stress, work, and whiny children. I did an experiment in December to see if I could go from Dec 1 to Dec 25th without eating any sweets at all. I was pretty sure I was going to shrivel up and die if I succeeded, but I did it and I was so proud of myself. I've continued to do this since January 1st until now. It has made dieting and choosing good foods much easier to do, and I've lost almost 10 pounds since March 15th.

 

I agree that it is cardio that is going to help you lose the weight, not weight lifting. My wife bought a Jillian Michaels 30 day shred DVD, and she used it once and I've been using it off and on ever since. What I like about it is that there are no dance moves or choreography involved. It's just straight exercises: jumping jacks, push ups, butt kicks, sit ups... very manly stuff you don't feel silly doing.

[tkrestonva[TK]]

Go get'em Nate! I'm definitely rooting for you.

 

I agree that the food you put into your body is as important (if not more so) than the exercise you get out of it. Basic formula for weight loss: Calories burned - calories consumed = lost weight. Cut back the junk (or cut it out completely), eat clean foods such as lean meats, whole grains, and fresh fruits & veggies, and you'll start to look, feel, and perform better. Can't expect the body to respond like a high-performance car if you give it cheap, low-grade fuel. Or as I'm sure Paul and other software guys would tell you: garbage in = garbage out.

 

As for the weightlifting, here's where I disagree. Yeah, cardio can make you skinny, but if that's all you do you'll simply end up being a smaller version of your current self. Smaller - yes. Better, stronger, faster, leaner - no. I believe the term is "skinny-fat person". Like cardio, weightlifting also burns calories, but unlike cardio, the larger, stronger muscles you get from weight training burn calories 24/7, even when you're at rest. Cardio burns calories, but only while you're doing it. Ever wonder why bodybuilders, powerlifters, football players, and other strength athletes don't seem to stop eating? It's because all the muscle they carry demands a near-constant supply of fuel. More muscle = higher metabolism (especially important for us 40-somethings), stronger bones, tougher connective tissue, better body fat ratio, you name it. Muscle is heavier than fat so you may gain weight but you'll be smaller, leaner, and more energetic than with cardio alone.

 

Best advise out there is to balance both cardio (heart health, immediate calorie burning) and weight training (everything else). Throw in yoga or some other form of flexibility training, and you've got your bases covered.

 

Am I just talking trash? Nope. I'm 6'1", 215 lbs, I've got a 44" chest / 34" waist, & less than 10% bodyfat (my goal is to get down to 8% and keep it there). Been lifting for over 20 years. Got a 400lb squat, 300lb bench press, 200lb military press. I also run (2-3 miles 3x/week), practice karate, train Parkour, and do yoga. As far as the libido goes ...

 

I didn't grow up the athletic type - hell, I couldv'e been Steve Urkel's stunt double. Now - I'm physically better than I ever was, and it doesn't go unnoticed, know what I mean?

 

Not bad for a guy who'll be 41 years old in August.

[TK-4510[501st]]

Oh Nate. I is fat too. 5'8 and 200 lbs. I gave up troopin' cause I dont wanna look bad in the armor. IT IS HARD to loose weight at 41. I was 145 lbs when I was 20....crazy huh? I like food wayyyyyyy too much maybe we can all help each other. Does anyone have a guy diet? Just tell me what to eat. Dont tell me what NOT to eat

[TK-4510[501st]]

tkrestonva do you do anything else??? Where do you find time to do all this????

[tkrestonva[TK]]

I also work full-time in the aerospace industry, part-time as an Air Force Reservist, and am going to grad school for what I hope will eventually be a PhD. Not to mention spending time with the wife & kids. Oh, and there's that thing I like to do that involves white plastic and some of the best people I've ever had the honor of interacting with.

 

You'd be amazed how much you can get out of your day by cutting out the frivolous, non-value added crap in one's life (watching TV, excessive sleep, etc.) and if you're willing to push yourself past what you think your limits are. Couple that with the extra energy reserves that come from eating clean and regular exercise, and life becomes a lot more fulfilling.

[Sgt Steve]

First I think that to drop you from this "LFL" troop because of this is @###@****** and %^^$$###@@ and that they S**&&&^^%%! But then the best way to stay healthy is both the same for guy's or gal's.....try to be as slim as you can. That's all. I have a problem with the med's I have to take every day. They tend to (for the male) cause weight gain. The best and most EZ way is just walk. Walk-walk-walk. And after only a month or two then add some running, but don't go nutty over it. Running is good but not the "run till ya puke" type of running. Even the CF up here have really cut down the run idea and now push walking but with 'pack' and more! Cut down on all food intake and get the chug-a-lug thing going with water. lots of water. TIP: squeeze fresh Lemon into water, add just the smallest bit of sweetener. Real Lemon juice is a "fat burner" so when you go walking, take some lemon Juse and if you need water too. Oh.......(they say sex works lot's too! ) Good luck bro!

Edited May 2, 2010 by Sgt Steve

[MiDri]

It's a good incentive man. Sometimes the truth hurts, but it's always good to have something passionate about that makes you want to be in better shape... It's hard to just exercise with no goal if that's not your normal routine.

[Runnriottt]

Oh Nate. I is fat too. 5'8 and 200 lbs. I gave up troopin' cause I dont wanna look bad in the armor. IT IS HARD to loose weight at 41. I was 145 lbs when I was 20....crazy huh? I like food wayyyyyyy too much maybe we can all help each other. Does anyone have a guy diet? Just tell me what to eat. Dont tell me what NOT to eat

 

 

Guys.. Your support means tons to me. Maybe I can loose enough to not need shims for the ab to kidney!

 

I agree Mike, lets work this as a group. Who ever wants to jump on lets go! What I plan on doing is suiting up, taking a now shot as well as a screen shot on my Wii Fit. Then as it goes, post my progress. Ill try every week or ten days. This will be an online diary of sorts with my buds. A build thread of a different type. I gave up soda today. I have a weakness for Milk tea and Starbucks.. that has to go. At least in the volume I eat em!

 

Wife tossed a shoe in my butt today as well. She told me every 10 pounds renders a weekend excursion... So Paul, its working already! And that is cooler than any Star Wars anything... Ya know!

[D-MAC]

Same sort of problem here Nathan...i Trooped at the SW Concert...felt great but when i saw the pics i thought How fat am i!!!! Didn't stop the peeps from taking pics...maybe because they naver saw a fat Trooper before.

 

Anyway iv'e got myself a cycle and plan to use it ti get to and from work...off to Florida in September so there's another insentive for me

 

btw i'm 6'2 and about 250 pounds

[puro]

I share the pain, plan is to take it from 205 to 180 by the end of summer. And let it stay there.

[nannytrooper[TK]]

Okay, I have you say you guys are making me feel even bigger than I thought I looked. I have just gotten my armour (second hand) and it has to be completely redone to fit better. The sad part is I outweigh everyone that has posted on here so far. I guess I will have to jump on the band wagon and start losing the pounds and inches too.

[firebladejedi[TK]]

Nate im in the same boat as you.. i weight in at just over 15 stone ( 210-215 lbs? ) and need to shift some weight.

 

I was called fatty yesterday at an event ( all in jest ) i think the push bike is coming out to loose those extra pounds.

 

But if you want to keep fit and loose weight, one word - Judo. Last year i took up Judo once a week and within 6 weeks my beer belly fell off. But since then ive been back on the beer and pies and need to start again.. Incidentally i stopped Judo and went back to Ju-Jitsu but the workout is not the same and the weight loss is no where near the same hence why i need to cycle to work, lol..

 

Good luck with the diet

[Amish Trooper]

It is hard but very doable. A year ago I weighed 230 I am at 200 now and I'm 6 foot and 35 years old. I cut out Soda and tried to limit my intake of processed foods. I went towards whole grains etc. I also started this great program called 100 pushups http://hundredpushups.com/...I liked it and it works . Keep us posted and Also documet . I would suggest doing a photo diary. It is a good motivator to see your progress

[HPDblues[TK]]

Wow!

 

I didn't realize how many fat troopers there were here... J/K!

 

Seriously, I've lost approximately 16 pounds since the beginning of the year by completely eliminating soda!

 

(And I LOVE my soda pop... )

 

Plus of course, a four mile run/walk three times a week and lifting weights two times a week. I'm trying to get down to my fighting weight of 159 pounds...I've got about 3 pounds to go.

 

Hang in there Nate! It's doable!

 

T

[Darth Voorhees[501st]]

I think im gonna have to jump on this as well...im 38 yrs old, 5'8" at 210..id like to get down to 160-170. Or at the least lose the belly, man boobs and maybe a couple inches off the waist. Although i think i look pretty good in my TK armor...i think im at the very limit i can be without looking "fat". It bothers me the most when i troop as boba. i carry my weight kinda all over, although more in the abs and chest.

 

Ive been cutting down portion size cuz like Mike, i LOVE food WAY too much. So im trying to eat smaller sized meals more frequently. Im also eating less junk and more grains and veggies. My lunch has gone from 2 slices of pizza and a jamcian beef patty with cheese, to a loaded up salad made with only spinach, and with beans, and veggies. And a bottle of water. Ive pretty much replaced all soda with water, and only drink a diet drink or soda on occasion, cuz sometimes i need to taste..something lol. There is also an organic brand called "honest tea"..that makes a limeade which has very very low sugar and is all organic which is good and does the job to replace sugary drinks with something thats not "diet" filled with chemicals. Ive lost about 5 pounds in just a few weeks and i think once i get back on my bike, and if i continue this, i should get to my goal weight.

Edited May 2, 2010 by Darth Voorhees

[D-MAC]

Do i see a new thread starting!!!

 

 

THE FIT TROOPER PROGRAME????

 

Any more suggestions???

[bluehickey]

Do i see a new thread starting!!!

 

 

THE FIT TROOPER PROGRAME????

 

Any more suggestions???

 

I agree, we should take the 'troopers helping troopers' to the next level and document our physical activity and weight loss. I think in general guys just don't talk about this stuff with each other even though it may constantly be on our minds. I think we should start a thread posting pics of ourselves in our armor at our current weight and then post progress pics as each month goes by.

 

I am 5'9" and currently weigh 190. I'd like to get down to 175, and I think I can do it by August. When I see myself in armor pics I don't see a fat trooper, but more of a stocky trooper, and I'd love to look more screen accurate simply by changing my physical proportions.

 

Here is a pic from an event from a couple weeks ago...

[troopermaster]

You don't need to do any excersizes to lose weight Nathan and you can lose weight while you sleep believe it or not. When I was 210 lbs a few years back I started the Atkins diet and and got down to 180 in about a month with no problems. I kind of made my own diet based on the Atkins and drank lots of water, no tea or coffee, cut out bread and potato completely, and only ate fish or chicken for meals with plenty of vegetables and fruit. It's really simple when you look into it. Keep it simple, just eat natural food, anything man made is not good for you. Fruit, meat, fish, vegetables and water.

 

If you don't want to work up a sweat with hard excersizes, wear a plastic bin liner under your sweatshirt (against your skin) and go for a walk. Make sure you are hydrated (you should be drinking plenty of water every day) and watch the weight drop off you.

 

This all worked for me and I had no trouble losing the weight. I work in the building industry and it is hard graft, so that could have worked the weight off of me more than usual, but I didn't do any excersizes during my weight loss diet.

 

HTH's!

[Murray1134[501st]]

I think a Trooper fit club idea is great. I know something was started on the Legion boards, but I haven't seen an update in a really long time.

 

I know I could definitely lose a few pounds. I'm about 6'2" and I'm probably hovering around 220, haven't weighed myself in a long time, so it could even be worse than that.

 

I'm looking at more film accurate armor for my next kit, and I really don't want to have a "Fat Trooper in little armor" look.

[Mosi[501st]]

Same here... I want to lose about 25lbs... 205 and 5' 11". My wife and I recently signed up to run the Portland Marathon in October so I'm hoping to see a lot of changes. We also dropped some cash on a VO2 test that shows you what your optimal fat burning zone is and when you stop burning fat and start burning glucose, which is bad since it will start eating lean body mass.

 

There is a trooper in my garrison that decided to lose over 100lbs because he wanted to get healthy AND look good in his costumes (he has a lot of them). It's extremely motivating and he pretty much did it by just changing his diet. Instead of starting with an overweight friendly costume like a TI, IC, or AT-AT driver, he set his sights on getting into a TK first, so he lost the weight. There is an article some local rag wrote about him and I will see if I can dig it up.

[bluehickey]

This is great to hear that so many of us have the same goal of looking better in our armor!

 

And with that, I am proud to annouce the Trooper Fit Club thread!

 

Come join in the fun - free TK window decal stickers for those who hit their goal weight!

[tigger68[501st]]

I'm going to offer my services to the FISD. I need to lose weight like most people I know. However, I do have a M.S. in Exercise Physiology and have my certification as a Certified Strenght and Conditioning Specialist.

 

So, if anyone wants advice, or cheering on, I'm offering those options to the FISD. All detachments need their own fitness club, we have one now, and I'm offering to be the personal trainer there.

 

Hope to see you there. And remember we all need to be more fit (unless you are an olympic athlete and then all bets are off).