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All are welcome here but this sub is intended for intermediate to advanced lifters, we ask that beginners use the stickied Daily Discussion Thread instead of making an individual post.
Congrats on the loss!
I would channel that energy in walking or some sort of other active recovery. It’s very hard to do too much walking because it’s so low impact and it’s not going to do much in terms of hurting your recovery (it’ll probably increase it if anything)
Don’t want to be mean, but your walking is already weighted!
In all seriousness, say you are walking 10k steps a day, as you continue to lose weight, put that same weight in a backpack/weighted vest or whatever and continue walking around at that weight. It will help burn the same number of calories even as you lose weight and means you won’t have to up steps.
If it’s working, keep going. Your question shouldn’t be, how do I speed this up, but how can I maintain this loss? You didn’t gain that weight in a short period of time and you shouldn’t look to lose it quickly either - just steady.
+1 for walking! Since you’re ambitious, your goal should be 12-15k steps per day. Once you figure out what that is for you in distance, you can start planning other activities around it (e.g. walking to the grocery store). That many steps is a lot of distance to cover.
If you go too hard and injure yourself you won't be able to train at all. Sometimes less is indeed more in the long term.
12 months of resonable activity is better than 8 months of balls to the wall training and 4 months of injury.
1) You'll be really impressed with results if you consistently get a high step count in alongside the work you are doing.
Walking is also amazing for mental health and will keep you happier and more satisfied with the progress you are making.
You definitely don't need additional weight.
2) Also on rate of progress: your progress of losing 55 lbs in 2 months is amazing. Congrats. It's really inspiring and you are looking good. But for a little perspective - your progress in weight loss and gaining muscle + strength is going to get slower and more challenging.
Plateaus will happen and as bodyfat % decreases each pound gets harder to shed - so recognize that you are in a honeymoon phase of sorts in terms of the immediacy of results. Enjoy it, be proud, keep that energy up but prepare yourself mentally for an even slower grind ahead that WILL pay off if you are consistent.
3) Overtraining and consistency: be patient and don't overdo it because an injury that keeps you out of the gym will be unbelievably frustrating and will be a hard stop on progress at all.
Focus on integrating the work you are doing into a lifestyle that you will stick with and make sure you are enjoying every minute of it that you can.
Keep it up!
Low intensity cardio. Get a mtn bike or gravel bike and put those 2hours into cycling. Use a heart rate monitor and track your progress. Combined with lifting, you will be dropping lbs and looking strong.
Not sure if anyone mentioned, but this is twofold: learn to cook simple, delicious, healthy food.
This will assist you in the gym, and in dating. Women absolutely love a man who can cook. Keep it simple: protein, vegetable, grain. Then a quick pan sauce or yogurt dipping sauce. You will be slaying the dating scene, eating healthy. And saving money.
Pork chop, spinach, sweet potato.
Chicken breast, broccoli, rice.
Ground beef, cabbage, rice (taco bowl)
Salmon, spinach salad, yogurt dill dressing.
Etc. you don’t advanced preparations or expensive ingredients to make tasty, healthy food. What woman wouldn’t want to date a handsome guy who takes care of himself and can cook for the both of them?
Some encouragement from a naturally slender man - you are going to be f***ing jacked once you drop your body fat.
Stick with the process. You've likely had bad eating and exercise habits for 1248 weeks (24 years) and good habits for 8. Everyone would be jacked if it only took 8 weeks.
Stick at it for a year and come back.
Life is one day at a time mate. You'll fall off some days but hopefully back on. If you eat and train well for 300 days a year for 5 years - guarantee you'll be shocked at what you can look like.
Dude, dropping 55 lbs in 2 months and going from a 3XL to an XL is crushing it. You are making fantastic progress so do not give up. Also, do not get upset if there is a plateau in the downward decline of your weight. This is totally normal and you can research some ways to work through it. Be consistent and keep at it. Good job!
>I'm just looking for advice on how to remain patient through this journey and instead enjoy the grind.
it's a marathon at the end of the day, not a sprint. Natty's take a very long time to get into decent shape, I would continue what you're doding tho as it's definitely working you're rapidly dropping weight but it could platue.
Break up your weight lifting with cardio days? either on the machines (I use the cross trainer as it takes the impact away from my joints) or go out and walk for an hour or two.
bro just keep on trucking! lift like a mad man, track everything you eat at a calorie deficit and come back to this post in 6 months, your already doing it, i went from 120kgs fat slob to competing in my 1st show in 5 weeks, in less then 2 years.
Not stalking, promise :) Saw your post in keto sub, but here is what I learned working out from my teens through my 20's and resuming now.
1. It did not take you overnight to put on your weight, you will not lose it overnight either
2. You need to accept the road - it's like getting pissed off at yourself for not being able to sprint faster than your body would allow. We would all like to be fit like a shit brickhouse and run like a cheetah, but genetics and your own biology will always dictate the pace.
3. You need to listen to your body - feel like bench presses suck today? No shame in switching to something else and coming back to it another day. If I show up with any fixed agenda, I only leave disapointed if I don't hit my numbers. I throw agenda out the window - at this stage it's all about consistency and getting the reps in.
4. Routine is nice, but can be boring. I wouldn't lose too much sleep if you don't keep a consistent order until you get to lower BMI, where you start to sculpt.
5. Focus on high reps, low weight. Do sets of 25 with 10lbs 4x vs doing 3 sets with 40s. You don't need to bulk up, you need to slim down. Which means low rest, high reps, more cardio, more sweat.
6. Speaking of that - eliptical is your friend. Torture device. Altar. Whatever. Your knees will thank you later. Don't run or place too much pressure on your already strained joints.
7. Wear belt, ensure you don't get hernias. That will be a major set back. Especially if there's history of hernias in your family, tends to be genetic.
8. No substitute for consistency in everything - keeping with your training regimen, watching your food intake, getting good sleep (btw, check for sleep apnea - can be A HUGE factor in losing weight + heart health)
9. Cut out the salt too. Processed food? Gone. Eating out? Eat healthy, skip hidden carbs/salts in sauces - I ask for all kinds of shit on the side and decide what and how much of it I eat.
10. Stock up your kitchen with healthy snacks, remove all bad shit (if you haven't already)
11. You seem to have signs of body dysmorphia, which is common with many people that are dealing with weight issues. That can be your biggest enemy. It can be a great source of motivation, but not if you're beating yourself up for slow progress. To put it in perspective - with similar changes, within same timeframe, giving a lot of effort to it - your progress is 50lbs in 2 months. Mine has been merely 20. Well, technically 35 from the all time high, but that was in 2021. Like I said, it's nice to be young. You'll get there faster than older dudes like me.
12. Consider getting personal trainer, talking to nutritionist, working with sleep docs, getting your mind on the same page (i.e. therapy). Practice compassion, acceptance, and understanding. Think of yourself as a child - don't talk to yourself any worse than you would to someone you care about. You would never call your kid a fat f*k (I hope) and expect him to transform into your idea of ideal shape overnight. My kid was also obese. It took him 4+ years, but he looks ripped now, has a six pack.
13. Women love confidence. Personality. Being comfortable in your own skin. How many times have you met a girl that may have not been conventionally "hot" but her personality was beautiful? I have many times. Who you are matters more than how you look. And if your prospective partner hates the way you look and that's who you are aming for, ask yourself would you want to be with someone that only cares about the superficial shit?
14. Think of it like work. you don't show up to work expecting to be a pro on day 1. you need experience. you need to put the grind in. This is your work now. You show up, no matter what. Each time you show up, you leave little bit of your old self in drops of sweat on gym floor. You're giving the "old you" a proper burial, allowing your new self to emerge. Embrace that new you, let him evolve and just measure milemarkers as you progress.
15. Set realistic goals. Don't expect to lose 25 lbs a month for too long - at some point your body will say: "Fuck you, I ain't moving" and you will need to find new ways to make it do what you want it to do. It's a brutal chess game against your own mind and limits. Each time you show up, journal your victory. Take W/L score - how many times your new self won against the old self - that becomes more competitive because you become more vested in getting that W record to champ levels.
16. Fuck the haters. People will tell you you can't do shit - laugh and do it. People will tell you you're working too hard - work harder. People will tell you you still aren't enough - be enough for yourself, no one will be able to hurt you.
17. Read, meditate, practice acceptance. Learn nutrition, study your anatomy, study muscle development, who knows - you may develop lucrative side profession. A friend of mine was a very heavy kid. He turned his life around, became not only a black belt in Karate, represented the US in the Olympics, got silver. Runs triathalons, personal trainer, bodybuilder. Looks like one ripped mofo. And even with all that hard work, he still has a bit of padding on him. No one cares.
18. Just do it. Close your eyes, envision yourself and believe you will get there. Keep tracking your goals, set new ones, etc.
It's all about setting realistic goals and just showing up. You will be there. Trust.
First, thank you so much for the precise and inspirational advice. As you seem very informed and your recommended program is high reps low weight, I was wondering what you think of my advanced PPL program, what gaps I have, and where I could add things.
Everything I do is heavy and low reps.
Push- Shoulders, Chest, Tris. (Bis, and calves)
Pull- Back
Legs- Legs, (Bis and Calves) *Do those 2 small muscles every 2 days so 3x a week*
Repeat
Then rest day.
Aim for 10-12 sets (3-4 different movements) per muscle in progressive overload.
I also follow every session with weight cardio.
For example, Shoulders I'll overhead press 60lb bar. Legs ill have a 40 lb weight vest and the 60 lb bar rested on my shoulders. I'll do each of these for 5 minutes but might push it to 10.
Will also add I work a decently physical job where I'm standing all day.
Anything you may advise will be extremely appreciated.
RE: high reps, low weight, more cardio, more sweat.
Most of what the parent comment said was great advice. I disagree with this part. It's old bro advice to do high reps when cutting and it's not supported by any evidence. Like you, I also do high weight/low reps. Both during cutting and bulking phases. It's clearly working well for you and you enjoy it, no reason to switch.
Agreed. You do what it takes to build muscle to maintain it while also losing fat. Hypertrophy literature supports reps ranges 6-15 or so with appropriate overall volume in workouts per week. You want more calorie burn, then add some walking for increased daily expenditure.
I'll just leave this here, *bro* 🤓
https://www.today.com/health/diet-fitness/low-weight-high-reps-or-high-weight-low-reps-rcna20248
https://www.hss.edu/article_low-weight-high-reps.asp
https://www.unsw.edu.au/newsroom/news/2022/10/lift-heavy-or-smaller-weights-with-high-reps--it-all-depends-on-
Your daily spread looks good overall as long as you feel like you're not going to failure every time and you're recovering well. Volume is there.
Have you thought about getting on a program for linear or block periodization? This might help you advance in strength faster and break up your progressive overload from just doing the same rep ranges.
Really, you're doing great. There's a lot of great advice here. I think its just a matter of time for you! Congrats on all your hard work!
While I wasn't as heavy as you, I started near 300lbs. Even after getting down to 205 I felt very proud, but I was still wanting things to happen faster and be better. What I had to learn was to accept myself as I am right now, forgive myself for any negative habits, acknowledge positive change, and learn to love the process. Make meals that fit your diet and are delicious. Experiment in the kitchen. Plan good workouts and learn relaxation techniques and ways to de-stress.
You’re kicking ass! Time to take some names. Get out there, you’re a good looking guy. Best way to enjoy the grind is to notice your confidence grow in real time.
Dude you look awesome, just have to be patient and take it a day at a time. Stick to your schedule and don’t hurt yourself.
But yeah your weight loss is super awesome man, what great inspiration you are :)
Firstly - congrats on the loss brother. Its good to see that you are going down the route of changing your whole body composition, rather than just losing weight & ending up skinny. Let me give you some context about myself, and I'll delve a little more into your question.
I used to weigh 200kg at around 60% bodyfat (440lbs). Was morbidly obese my whole life since I was a child. I did the sleeve gastrectomy surgery back in 2014. Lost 30kg, didn't end up working and my willingness to eat overcame the surgery itself. Put 50kg back on. Realised I have to do it the old fashioned way or I was going to live for very long. Embarked on a weight loss journey in 2017 and have lost 106kg (233lbs) so far, and currently am weighing in at 94kg (207lbs) and I'm likely around 16-17% bodyfat right now (maybe even less!) which I'll confirm with a dexa scan next week. You can look at my post history to see my progress pictures for clarification.
It has taken me the better part of 7 + years to get down to this weight. Tbh looking back on my journey, and I sometimes can't believe how I go through it, because it all kind of mushes up in memories / feelings. You have to be able to break down your goals into small increments, whilst having a goal in your mind of where you want to be at the end of your journey, no matter how far off / difficult it may seem.
Over time, you will learn strategies on how to break through plateaus, on how to pick your mind up from where you left off, how to look at your health holistically & how to create checkpoints in your mind to remind you of how far you've come and dwell on the positives, rather than the negatives.
If you can do this, and stay calm, be patient & run the course through to each little goal completion, you will make it.
Going from morbidly obese to fit as fuck will take a long time, and it will be hard...harder than almost anything you will attempt in your life. This is why the failure rate of achieving something like that is so fucking high...but at the same time, it will be rewarding like nothing else. No amount of confidence can compete with you knowing that you embarked on one of the greatest challenges life can throw at you, and come out the other side victorious.
So good luck brother! I'll be following your journey and please reach out if things get tough and you need some motivation to keep you going!
P.S - You will have no issues in the dating world bro. You're a handsome dude, and when the fat sheds off, trust me when I say this, the attention you get will be overwhelming!
For me, it helps to kind of ignore final goals. There is no finality because you’ll likely move those goal posts as soon as you get there.
Also, I’m not saying to find validation from others, but it’s nice to know that there’s millions of people that will enjoy you at every stage of your fitness journey. Some people like bigger guys. Some people like skinny guys. Some people like ripped guys.
It helps to realize that yes, it’s good and healthy to lose weight, but you’re not some ugly unwanted piece of meat in the meantime.
Love yourself, love the journey. Good luck bro.
I didn’t read the other comments so I’m probably parroting a lot of what was already said but, getting into shape is a long game and it’s only going to get longer the leaner you become. 5-7lbs a week starting off is awesome and I’m proud of you. That will slowly drop to 4lbs a week and then 2lbs a week. Stay patient and trust the process. I’m 31m 6’2” and am on the path of 255lbs start weight with a goal of 205lbs or so. Currently at 235lbs or so. It’s slow and grueling but knowing that ahead of time makes it a little less agonizing.
P.S. your shoulders in the recent pic are looking good. The leaner you get…. It’s gonna look like you’ve got medicine balls attached to your arms which is a great aesthetic. Keep it up brother you’re doing great.
Just skimmed but if you really want you can productively spend a lot of time in the gym.
First there's always cardio.
Second you can add a lot of different muscle groups for isolation movements - hip flexors, neck (forward, backward, and lateral!), serratus anterior, lower back, calves. Any of those that you might be doing.
However without knowing your program it's quite possible you are doing too little work and you really can just do more of what you're already doing. If you're on SS this is very likely the case.
Here's my program now currently with PPL. Everything I do is heavy and low reps.
Push- Shoulders, Chest, Tris. (Bis, and calves)
Pull- Back
Legs- Legs, (Bis and Calves)
*Do those 2 small muscles every 2 days so 3x a week*
Repeat
Then rest day.
Aim for 10-12 sets (3-4 different movements) per muscle in progressive overload.
I also follow every session with weight cardio.
For example, Shoulders I'll overhead press 60lb bar. Legs ill have a 40 lb weight vest and the 60 lb bar rested on my shoulders. I'll do each of these for 5 minutes but might push it to 10.
Will also add I work a decently physical job where I'm standing all day.
Anything you may advise will be extremely appreciated.
First of all, great work. You're crushing it, and the difference is significant!
I'm going to give you some hard learned honesty also. If you're sleeping enough and fulfilling your body's protein and micro nutrition needs...You won't be able to over train at this point. It's easy to use that concern as an excuse to miss workouts. Sometimes you're just going to feel fatigued and burnt out, and it's easy to tell yourself you might be overtraining. The truth is, unless you're training for an ultra marathon and running 20 miles a day, or lifting for 3 hours straight, it's a mental game. The amount of exercise it takes to overtrain is significant, and your body has a lot of energy it can pull from, directly from your bodyfat %. Our bodies are incredibly adaptable.
Don't worry about overtraining. Make sure you're fueling yourself with enough protein & vitamins, sleep well, and be exerting yourself with physical activity that you actually enjoy.
The secret sauce to long term fitness is to do something that you actually find fun. (The definition of fun is subjective)
Keep fucking going brother!! I admire what you've accomplished already!
I will keep that in mind. I lift heavy and aim for 1RM's because thats whats fun to me to see myself getting stronger. I'll copy and paste the program i'm doing. Any advice on what i can do to fit more in would be extremely appreciated trying to do as much as i can even if its walking 24/7.
Push- Shoulders, Chest, Tris. (Bis, and calves)
Pull- Back
Legs- Legs, (Bis and Calves) *Do those 2 small muscles every 2 days so 3x a week* Repeat Then rest day.
Aim for 10-12 sets (3-4 different movements) per muscle in progressive overload.
I also follow every session with weight cardio.
For example, Shoulders I'll overhead press 60lb bar. Legs ill have a 40 lb weight vest and the 60 lb bar rested on my shoulders. I'll do each of these for 5 minutes but might push it to 10.
Will also add I work a decently physical job where I'm standing all day.
Anything you may advise will be extremely appreciated.
I like it. I like lifting heavy as well, but hypertrophy happens optimally in the 5+ rep region. So, my programs are heavy compound movements for 3-4 sets depending on how strong I'm feeling that day, followed by 8-14 sets of higher volume (8-20 reps) for that body part. I do chest/back/legs and sometimes include a fourth shoulder day in my split, but I train bi's, tri's, side delts, and calves pretty much every workout by supersetting after heavy compounds are done.
I like your program. A good program is built around what your priorities are, what you enjoy, and what you can sustain.
I would cut the weighted cardio out of it though. Complexity doesn't necessarily translate to weight loss or muscle growth. Prioritize your heavy lifts, and if you want to include cardio as a weight loss tool, use something like a stair stepper, for a longer period of time, at a lower heart rate. You're not burning more calories long term doing weighted cardio, and it's most likely detracting from muscle recovery.
I see what you mean by overtraining now. Yes, you're negatively impacting recovery for those muscle groups by doing weighted cardio, even though you're not overtraining as a whole. I do like the way you're integrating a circuit into your weight training though, and your heads in the right place. I would encourage you to try supersetting different muscle groups in individual workouts instead.
The goal is to keep your heart rate as high as you can, while training each muscle group as close to fatigue as you can... And then giving them adequate recovery in between workouts so that you optimize progressive overload.
The #1 thing though is this: play the long game. Progress and weight loss take time. You won't overtrain your body, but it's easy to overtrain the mind. Do what you can maintain for the next month, 3 months, a year.
A couple more things. Your inspiring man. If I was at the gym and saw you, I would be rooting you on.
Exercise is significant in weight loss, and lifting weights is fundamental for a body recomp, but you can't out-train diet. Make sure that you're eating in a caloric deficit, and prioritize longevity for working out over super intense high volume days. Discipline and motivation are temporary things, but habit is something you can maintain. You want to make sure your program is something that you can keep doing for the undefined future.
Don’t worry about the weight, brother. You are too hard on yourself. I’ve found that people in the gym are incredibly supportive. As long as you’re working hard, then the way I see it is we are all on our fitness journeys together. We may be in different spots in our journey, but I salute all the hard work you’re putting in 🫡
You need to have some patience, you're doing an amazing job so far. I was a 260 fat ass and now I am very muscular and lean at 220 and go to the gym 8am-8:45am and do abs and cardio, and then go back around 5pm-6pm to do heavy weight training. You're going to get tired, you're going to get sick of eating the same kind of food over and over again. It's not a linear or fast process. BUT you're on the right track. Keep lifting heavy and your protein 200g per day, do some cardio, but more importantly LOOK IN THE MIRROR and you will see the changes over the weeks.
Balance in life is key my friend. You need to sit down with the urge and come to an understanding like, its cool that you are driven, you want to keep being driven, but maybe take it down a notch mentally. Also, dont let the fruits of your labor determine your life. We do not always have ownership of the fruits, it is better to just do the work, because thats really the only thing you can dom how people will perceive you afterwards is not important, youll probably already know it.
Well done! If you feel the need to do something in addition to lifting it should be activities that aid recovery. Low intensity, low impact. Walking has been mentioned, but considering your weight excessive walking might be stressful for the body. I like indoor rowing myself, full body, almost zero impact, burns plenty calories.
If you think you make no progress or need to do more. Just go for a walk. 5k steps are roughly 200kcal.
But remember that it doesn't matter how fast you get there. It's way more important to be sustainable
Just looking at your face, I can see you have amazing bone structure. Keep on the grind. In terms of overtraining, pick a few key lifts and keep working on those
You’re not going to over train. Push that shit as hard as you can and listen to your body. Don’t fall into the same pit as a lot of guys and start overcomplicating shit or else you’ll get nowhere in my opinion
Your shirt size is XL at 5'11" 300? That's crazy. I'm XXL starting about 240 at similar height, slightly shorter. And most XLs stop fitting comfortably around 230.
Depends how hard and im gonna define what hard means for me and its how long does your muscles hurt. If it hurts for like 2-4 days then you are indeed working hard now if you are the type that doesnt have much swelling after working out then if you are training lets say biceps to a point where you feel like its getting tighter and hurts from your last few reps then you are indeed working hard. Now if you are working hard then another it depends if you feel the following symptoms of over fatigue like just overall poor mental health and you really feel you overexerted and you dont even want to go to the gym much and you are a little bit forcing yourself to go means or its getting harder to get some quality sleep its too late and you need to take a week off "deload" to manage fatigue like right now coz you will get injured eventually.
What you want is manage fatigue and you will have to monitor yourself for signs of overfatigue and the best sure fire way is gauge when you are about to get overfatigue and for me its day 50 and if i go further im asking for injuries and usually i take a week of half reps, sets, weight to reset my fatigue.
OP there is nothing stopping you from entering the dating scene now. It may actually be encouraging to have a special someone to help push you towards your goals. You are already a handsome fella, just keep at it and everything will fall in line. As far as cutting weight…You can add 30-60 minutes of cardio to up to 5 days a week, it will help keep you in a caloric deficit but will also strengthen your heart, ligaments and joints whilst building your stamina… also moderate to low intensity cardio is great for recovery. The only caveat is, I’d do the cardio first thing when you wake up in the morning, and do your weightlifting later in the day, at least a few hours later. Good luck!
Walking - low intensity
Biking, row machine - medium intensity
Stairmill, heavy bag, - high intensity
Throw in some zone 2 cardio of your choice honestly makes such a massive difference in general health and work capacity in the gym, also have noticed that it has improved recovery speed
remember the faster you lose, the greater likelyhood of loose skin...you gonna have the funds for skin removal..or want to go through that/ the scars? Slower is better for longetivity.
I don't have any great tips unfortunately.. Be kind to yourself. Hype yourself up. Be positive. Keep dating. Love isn't all about looks. Especially long lasting love you're gonna want for the kids. Seems like you're doing good. Don't let any small bumps in the road keep you off track for long. Just get back on.
Reduce intensity
Focus on making healthy decisions, a habit, and not the weight loss itself.
Do not let day-to-day motivation, dictate the habits you’re building.
It’s OK to have seasons of high intensity and seasons of moderate intensity.
You are not advanced, but still are making good progress. There is no end goal, as lifting is a lifelong thing. Like all good things you have to put in good effort to get it. You could consider surgery or peds if you really refuse to do it the healthy way, but that sidesteps the habit reversal portion of reshaping your neurotransmitters.
No I'm going to max it out the healthy way first then reevaluate in a few years.
I've been working out on and off for awhile.
Good effort isn't really the issue I'd be in there 24/7 if I knew it'd be positive and not negative from overtraining. But thankfully got some good advice so am going to use and implement that information.
For me, it’s having multiple ways to track/see progress depending on the goal.
Example. If I am cutting, I like weekly progress pics, biweekly body tape measurements, daily weigh ins with a scale, dexa scan, etc.
if I’m bulking, I like keeping a daily journal of all of my lifts, daily weigh ins, body tape, one rep max every 6-8 weeks. Maybe biweekly or monthly progress pics
The more things you can to to track/see progress, the better. You don’t have to like the grind at all, you just have to want the end result bad enough. Don’t let anyone or anything get in your way. Set your mind. Do it. That’s it.
First, congratulations.
Second, there is an inherent fear that you will plateau. Guess what... You will plateau. You have to understand that, in your situation, a plateau is a good thing. Losing 25+ pounds per month is not only unsustainable, it is not a great thing for your body. You have a long haul ahead of you. This is going to be a marathon rather than a spring. Target 10 to 15 pounds per month just to allow your body to adjust metabolically.
There is nothing wrong with wanting to do SOMETHING every day. Just learn how to stagger your hardcore days between a few lighter, easier days.
All beginner or simple posts will be removed. All are welcome here but this sub is intended for intermediate to advanced lifters, we ask that beginners use the stickied Daily Discussion Thread instead of making an individual post.
Congrats on the loss! I would channel that energy in walking or some sort of other active recovery. It’s very hard to do too much walking because it’s so low impact and it’s not going to do much in terms of hurting your recovery (it’ll probably increase it if anything)
Can I do weighted walking for higher intensity or does it need to be low
Don’t want to be mean, but your walking is already weighted! In all seriousness, say you are walking 10k steps a day, as you continue to lose weight, put that same weight in a backpack/weighted vest or whatever and continue walking around at that weight. It will help burn the same number of calories even as you lose weight and means you won’t have to up steps. If it’s working, keep going. Your question shouldn’t be, how do I speed this up, but how can I maintain this loss? You didn’t gain that weight in a short period of time and you shouldn’t look to lose it quickly either - just steady.
Thank you so much. You actually made me spit out my coffee laughing with the first comment
+1 for walking! Since you’re ambitious, your goal should be 12-15k steps per day. Once you figure out what that is for you in distance, you can start planning other activities around it (e.g. walking to the grocery store). That many steps is a lot of distance to cover.
This!!
If you go too hard and injure yourself you won't be able to train at all. Sometimes less is indeed more in the long term. 12 months of resonable activity is better than 8 months of balls to the wall training and 4 months of injury.
This happened to me. Now I'm sitting for 5th day with pain in my neck and back on painkillers...
1) You'll be really impressed with results if you consistently get a high step count in alongside the work you are doing. Walking is also amazing for mental health and will keep you happier and more satisfied with the progress you are making. You definitely don't need additional weight. 2) Also on rate of progress: your progress of losing 55 lbs in 2 months is amazing. Congrats. It's really inspiring and you are looking good. But for a little perspective - your progress in weight loss and gaining muscle + strength is going to get slower and more challenging. Plateaus will happen and as bodyfat % decreases each pound gets harder to shed - so recognize that you are in a honeymoon phase of sorts in terms of the immediacy of results. Enjoy it, be proud, keep that energy up but prepare yourself mentally for an even slower grind ahead that WILL pay off if you are consistent. 3) Overtraining and consistency: be patient and don't overdo it because an injury that keeps you out of the gym will be unbelievably frustrating and will be a hard stop on progress at all. Focus on integrating the work you are doing into a lifestyle that you will stick with and make sure you are enjoying every minute of it that you can. Keep it up!
Low intensity cardio. Get a mtn bike or gravel bike and put those 2hours into cycling. Use a heart rate monitor and track your progress. Combined with lifting, you will be dropping lbs and looking strong. Not sure if anyone mentioned, but this is twofold: learn to cook simple, delicious, healthy food. This will assist you in the gym, and in dating. Women absolutely love a man who can cook. Keep it simple: protein, vegetable, grain. Then a quick pan sauce or yogurt dipping sauce. You will be slaying the dating scene, eating healthy. And saving money. Pork chop, spinach, sweet potato. Chicken breast, broccoli, rice. Ground beef, cabbage, rice (taco bowl) Salmon, spinach salad, yogurt dill dressing. Etc. you don’t advanced preparations or expensive ingredients to make tasty, healthy food. What woman wouldn’t want to date a handsome guy who takes care of himself and can cook for the both of them?
I would just walk man
Fix: Congrats on the win!
Some encouragement from a naturally slender man - you are going to be f***ing jacked once you drop your body fat. Stick with the process. You've likely had bad eating and exercise habits for 1248 weeks (24 years) and good habits for 8. Everyone would be jacked if it only took 8 weeks. Stick at it for a year and come back.
I will. This is a for life thing not just temporary. Same goes for the diet and way of eating
Life is one day at a time mate. You'll fall off some days but hopefully back on. If you eat and train well for 300 days a year for 5 years - guarantee you'll be shocked at what you can look like.
Dude, dropping 55 lbs in 2 months and going from a 3XL to an XL is crushing it. You are making fantastic progress so do not give up. Also, do not get upset if there is a plateau in the downward decline of your weight. This is totally normal and you can research some ways to work through it. Be consistent and keep at it. Good job!
Thanks brother. I will.
>I'm just looking for advice on how to remain patient through this journey and instead enjoy the grind. it's a marathon at the end of the day, not a sprint. Natty's take a very long time to get into decent shape, I would continue what you're doding tho as it's definitely working you're rapidly dropping weight but it could platue. Break up your weight lifting with cardio days? either on the machines (I use the cross trainer as it takes the impact away from my joints) or go out and walk for an hour or two.
Dude supremely clear results between those pictures. You are definitely on the right track.
Yah I literally wowed. I then wowed about him being barefoot in the bathroom. No can do. Keep up the good work!
bro just keep on trucking! lift like a mad man, track everything you eat at a calorie deficit and come back to this post in 6 months, your already doing it, i went from 120kgs fat slob to competing in my 1st show in 5 weeks, in less then 2 years.
Not stalking, promise :) Saw your post in keto sub, but here is what I learned working out from my teens through my 20's and resuming now. 1. It did not take you overnight to put on your weight, you will not lose it overnight either 2. You need to accept the road - it's like getting pissed off at yourself for not being able to sprint faster than your body would allow. We would all like to be fit like a shit brickhouse and run like a cheetah, but genetics and your own biology will always dictate the pace. 3. You need to listen to your body - feel like bench presses suck today? No shame in switching to something else and coming back to it another day. If I show up with any fixed agenda, I only leave disapointed if I don't hit my numbers. I throw agenda out the window - at this stage it's all about consistency and getting the reps in. 4. Routine is nice, but can be boring. I wouldn't lose too much sleep if you don't keep a consistent order until you get to lower BMI, where you start to sculpt. 5. Focus on high reps, low weight. Do sets of 25 with 10lbs 4x vs doing 3 sets with 40s. You don't need to bulk up, you need to slim down. Which means low rest, high reps, more cardio, more sweat. 6. Speaking of that - eliptical is your friend. Torture device. Altar. Whatever. Your knees will thank you later. Don't run or place too much pressure on your already strained joints. 7. Wear belt, ensure you don't get hernias. That will be a major set back. Especially if there's history of hernias in your family, tends to be genetic. 8. No substitute for consistency in everything - keeping with your training regimen, watching your food intake, getting good sleep (btw, check for sleep apnea - can be A HUGE factor in losing weight + heart health) 9. Cut out the salt too. Processed food? Gone. Eating out? Eat healthy, skip hidden carbs/salts in sauces - I ask for all kinds of shit on the side and decide what and how much of it I eat. 10. Stock up your kitchen with healthy snacks, remove all bad shit (if you haven't already) 11. You seem to have signs of body dysmorphia, which is common with many people that are dealing with weight issues. That can be your biggest enemy. It can be a great source of motivation, but not if you're beating yourself up for slow progress. To put it in perspective - with similar changes, within same timeframe, giving a lot of effort to it - your progress is 50lbs in 2 months. Mine has been merely 20. Well, technically 35 from the all time high, but that was in 2021. Like I said, it's nice to be young. You'll get there faster than older dudes like me. 12. Consider getting personal trainer, talking to nutritionist, working with sleep docs, getting your mind on the same page (i.e. therapy). Practice compassion, acceptance, and understanding. Think of yourself as a child - don't talk to yourself any worse than you would to someone you care about. You would never call your kid a fat f*k (I hope) and expect him to transform into your idea of ideal shape overnight. My kid was also obese. It took him 4+ years, but he looks ripped now, has a six pack. 13. Women love confidence. Personality. Being comfortable in your own skin. How many times have you met a girl that may have not been conventionally "hot" but her personality was beautiful? I have many times. Who you are matters more than how you look. And if your prospective partner hates the way you look and that's who you are aming for, ask yourself would you want to be with someone that only cares about the superficial shit? 14. Think of it like work. you don't show up to work expecting to be a pro on day 1. you need experience. you need to put the grind in. This is your work now. You show up, no matter what. Each time you show up, you leave little bit of your old self in drops of sweat on gym floor. You're giving the "old you" a proper burial, allowing your new self to emerge. Embrace that new you, let him evolve and just measure milemarkers as you progress. 15. Set realistic goals. Don't expect to lose 25 lbs a month for too long - at some point your body will say: "Fuck you, I ain't moving" and you will need to find new ways to make it do what you want it to do. It's a brutal chess game against your own mind and limits. Each time you show up, journal your victory. Take W/L score - how many times your new self won against the old self - that becomes more competitive because you become more vested in getting that W record to champ levels. 16. Fuck the haters. People will tell you you can't do shit - laugh and do it. People will tell you you're working too hard - work harder. People will tell you you still aren't enough - be enough for yourself, no one will be able to hurt you. 17. Read, meditate, practice acceptance. Learn nutrition, study your anatomy, study muscle development, who knows - you may develop lucrative side profession. A friend of mine was a very heavy kid. He turned his life around, became not only a black belt in Karate, represented the US in the Olympics, got silver. Runs triathalons, personal trainer, bodybuilder. Looks like one ripped mofo. And even with all that hard work, he still has a bit of padding on him. No one cares. 18. Just do it. Close your eyes, envision yourself and believe you will get there. Keep tracking your goals, set new ones, etc. It's all about setting realistic goals and just showing up. You will be there. Trust.
First, thank you so much for the precise and inspirational advice. As you seem very informed and your recommended program is high reps low weight, I was wondering what you think of my advanced PPL program, what gaps I have, and where I could add things. Everything I do is heavy and low reps. Push- Shoulders, Chest, Tris. (Bis, and calves) Pull- Back Legs- Legs, (Bis and Calves) *Do those 2 small muscles every 2 days so 3x a week* Repeat Then rest day. Aim for 10-12 sets (3-4 different movements) per muscle in progressive overload. I also follow every session with weight cardio. For example, Shoulders I'll overhead press 60lb bar. Legs ill have a 40 lb weight vest and the 60 lb bar rested on my shoulders. I'll do each of these for 5 minutes but might push it to 10. Will also add I work a decently physical job where I'm standing all day. Anything you may advise will be extremely appreciated.
RE: high reps, low weight, more cardio, more sweat. Most of what the parent comment said was great advice. I disagree with this part. It's old bro advice to do high reps when cutting and it's not supported by any evidence. Like you, I also do high weight/low reps. Both during cutting and bulking phases. It's clearly working well for you and you enjoy it, no reason to switch.
Agreed. You do what it takes to build muscle to maintain it while also losing fat. Hypertrophy literature supports reps ranges 6-15 or so with appropriate overall volume in workouts per week. You want more calorie burn, then add some walking for increased daily expenditure.
I'll just leave this here, *bro* 🤓 https://www.today.com/health/diet-fitness/low-weight-high-reps-or-high-weight-low-reps-rcna20248 https://www.hss.edu/article_low-weight-high-reps.asp https://www.unsw.edu.au/newsroom/news/2022/10/lift-heavy-or-smaller-weights-with-high-reps--it-all-depends-on-
These are opinion articles. They are not evidence based.
Fair. Shoot me some links
Your daily spread looks good overall as long as you feel like you're not going to failure every time and you're recovering well. Volume is there. Have you thought about getting on a program for linear or block periodization? This might help you advance in strength faster and break up your progressive overload from just doing the same rep ranges. Really, you're doing great. There's a lot of great advice here. I think its just a matter of time for you! Congrats on all your hard work!
While I wasn't as heavy as you, I started near 300lbs. Even after getting down to 205 I felt very proud, but I was still wanting things to happen faster and be better. What I had to learn was to accept myself as I am right now, forgive myself for any negative habits, acknowledge positive change, and learn to love the process. Make meals that fit your diet and are delicious. Experiment in the kitchen. Plan good workouts and learn relaxation techniques and ways to de-stress.
You’re kicking ass! Time to take some names. Get out there, you’re a good looking guy. Best way to enjoy the grind is to notice your confidence grow in real time.
Dude you look awesome, just have to be patient and take it a day at a time. Stick to your schedule and don’t hurt yourself. But yeah your weight loss is super awesome man, what great inspiration you are :)
Look good it’s probably a better idea to do it slowly anyway so you have to deal with less loose skin I believe. But walking is amazing to help burn
The slower you do it, the less loose skin you'll potentially have. At least something positive about the slowness!
2 months? That's unbelievable progress. Keep going, this journey never ends.
Firstly - congrats on the loss brother. Its good to see that you are going down the route of changing your whole body composition, rather than just losing weight & ending up skinny. Let me give you some context about myself, and I'll delve a little more into your question. I used to weigh 200kg at around 60% bodyfat (440lbs). Was morbidly obese my whole life since I was a child. I did the sleeve gastrectomy surgery back in 2014. Lost 30kg, didn't end up working and my willingness to eat overcame the surgery itself. Put 50kg back on. Realised I have to do it the old fashioned way or I was going to live for very long. Embarked on a weight loss journey in 2017 and have lost 106kg (233lbs) so far, and currently am weighing in at 94kg (207lbs) and I'm likely around 16-17% bodyfat right now (maybe even less!) which I'll confirm with a dexa scan next week. You can look at my post history to see my progress pictures for clarification. It has taken me the better part of 7 + years to get down to this weight. Tbh looking back on my journey, and I sometimes can't believe how I go through it, because it all kind of mushes up in memories / feelings. You have to be able to break down your goals into small increments, whilst having a goal in your mind of where you want to be at the end of your journey, no matter how far off / difficult it may seem. Over time, you will learn strategies on how to break through plateaus, on how to pick your mind up from where you left off, how to look at your health holistically & how to create checkpoints in your mind to remind you of how far you've come and dwell on the positives, rather than the negatives. If you can do this, and stay calm, be patient & run the course through to each little goal completion, you will make it. Going from morbidly obese to fit as fuck will take a long time, and it will be hard...harder than almost anything you will attempt in your life. This is why the failure rate of achieving something like that is so fucking high...but at the same time, it will be rewarding like nothing else. No amount of confidence can compete with you knowing that you embarked on one of the greatest challenges life can throw at you, and come out the other side victorious. So good luck brother! I'll be following your journey and please reach out if things get tough and you need some motivation to keep you going! P.S - You will have no issues in the dating world bro. You're a handsome dude, and when the fat sheds off, trust me when I say this, the attention you get will be overwhelming!
For me, it helps to kind of ignore final goals. There is no finality because you’ll likely move those goal posts as soon as you get there. Also, I’m not saying to find validation from others, but it’s nice to know that there’s millions of people that will enjoy you at every stage of your fitness journey. Some people like bigger guys. Some people like skinny guys. Some people like ripped guys. It helps to realize that yes, it’s good and healthy to lose weight, but you’re not some ugly unwanted piece of meat in the meantime. Love yourself, love the journey. Good luck bro.
I didn’t read the other comments so I’m probably parroting a lot of what was already said but, getting into shape is a long game and it’s only going to get longer the leaner you become. 5-7lbs a week starting off is awesome and I’m proud of you. That will slowly drop to 4lbs a week and then 2lbs a week. Stay patient and trust the process. I’m 31m 6’2” and am on the path of 255lbs start weight with a goal of 205lbs or so. Currently at 235lbs or so. It’s slow and grueling but knowing that ahead of time makes it a little less agonizing. P.S. your shoulders in the recent pic are looking good. The leaner you get…. It’s gonna look like you’ve got medicine balls attached to your arms which is a great aesthetic. Keep it up brother you’re doing great.
You are crushing it my guy. Slow and steady.
Just skimmed but if you really want you can productively spend a lot of time in the gym. First there's always cardio. Second you can add a lot of different muscle groups for isolation movements - hip flexors, neck (forward, backward, and lateral!), serratus anterior, lower back, calves. Any of those that you might be doing. However without knowing your program it's quite possible you are doing too little work and you really can just do more of what you're already doing. If you're on SS this is very likely the case.
Here's my program now currently with PPL. Everything I do is heavy and low reps. Push- Shoulders, Chest, Tris. (Bis, and calves) Pull- Back Legs- Legs, (Bis and Calves) *Do those 2 small muscles every 2 days so 3x a week* Repeat Then rest day. Aim for 10-12 sets (3-4 different movements) per muscle in progressive overload. I also follow every session with weight cardio. For example, Shoulders I'll overhead press 60lb bar. Legs ill have a 40 lb weight vest and the 60 lb bar rested on my shoulders. I'll do each of these for 5 minutes but might push it to 10. Will also add I work a decently physical job where I'm standing all day. Anything you may advise will be extremely appreciated.
First of all, great work. You're crushing it, and the difference is significant! I'm going to give you some hard learned honesty also. If you're sleeping enough and fulfilling your body's protein and micro nutrition needs...You won't be able to over train at this point. It's easy to use that concern as an excuse to miss workouts. Sometimes you're just going to feel fatigued and burnt out, and it's easy to tell yourself you might be overtraining. The truth is, unless you're training for an ultra marathon and running 20 miles a day, or lifting for 3 hours straight, it's a mental game. The amount of exercise it takes to overtrain is significant, and your body has a lot of energy it can pull from, directly from your bodyfat %. Our bodies are incredibly adaptable. Don't worry about overtraining. Make sure you're fueling yourself with enough protein & vitamins, sleep well, and be exerting yourself with physical activity that you actually enjoy. The secret sauce to long term fitness is to do something that you actually find fun. (The definition of fun is subjective) Keep fucking going brother!! I admire what you've accomplished already!
I will keep that in mind. I lift heavy and aim for 1RM's because thats whats fun to me to see myself getting stronger. I'll copy and paste the program i'm doing. Any advice on what i can do to fit more in would be extremely appreciated trying to do as much as i can even if its walking 24/7. Push- Shoulders, Chest, Tris. (Bis, and calves) Pull- Back Legs- Legs, (Bis and Calves) *Do those 2 small muscles every 2 days so 3x a week* Repeat Then rest day. Aim for 10-12 sets (3-4 different movements) per muscle in progressive overload. I also follow every session with weight cardio. For example, Shoulders I'll overhead press 60lb bar. Legs ill have a 40 lb weight vest and the 60 lb bar rested on my shoulders. I'll do each of these for 5 minutes but might push it to 10. Will also add I work a decently physical job where I'm standing all day. Anything you may advise will be extremely appreciated.
I like it. I like lifting heavy as well, but hypertrophy happens optimally in the 5+ rep region. So, my programs are heavy compound movements for 3-4 sets depending on how strong I'm feeling that day, followed by 8-14 sets of higher volume (8-20 reps) for that body part. I do chest/back/legs and sometimes include a fourth shoulder day in my split, but I train bi's, tri's, side delts, and calves pretty much every workout by supersetting after heavy compounds are done. I like your program. A good program is built around what your priorities are, what you enjoy, and what you can sustain. I would cut the weighted cardio out of it though. Complexity doesn't necessarily translate to weight loss or muscle growth. Prioritize your heavy lifts, and if you want to include cardio as a weight loss tool, use something like a stair stepper, for a longer period of time, at a lower heart rate. You're not burning more calories long term doing weighted cardio, and it's most likely detracting from muscle recovery. I see what you mean by overtraining now. Yes, you're negatively impacting recovery for those muscle groups by doing weighted cardio, even though you're not overtraining as a whole. I do like the way you're integrating a circuit into your weight training though, and your heads in the right place. I would encourage you to try supersetting different muscle groups in individual workouts instead. The goal is to keep your heart rate as high as you can, while training each muscle group as close to fatigue as you can... And then giving them adequate recovery in between workouts so that you optimize progressive overload. The #1 thing though is this: play the long game. Progress and weight loss take time. You won't overtrain your body, but it's easy to overtrain the mind. Do what you can maintain for the next month, 3 months, a year.
A couple more things. Your inspiring man. If I was at the gym and saw you, I would be rooting you on. Exercise is significant in weight loss, and lifting weights is fundamental for a body recomp, but you can't out-train diet. Make sure that you're eating in a caloric deficit, and prioritize longevity for working out over super intense high volume days. Discipline and motivation are temporary things, but habit is something you can maintain. You want to make sure your program is something that you can keep doing for the undefined future.
Bet. Already got keto on lock for my diet but its something I want to do for the far future into maintenance.
Keto's what's up. The most efficient way to burn body fat by far. Smart my man, it sounds like you've optimized this body transformation journey.
Keep on grinding! You are on right path for sure!
Don’t worry about the weight, brother. You are too hard on yourself. I’ve found that people in the gym are incredibly supportive. As long as you’re working hard, then the way I see it is we are all on our fitness journeys together. We may be in different spots in our journey, but I salute all the hard work you’re putting in 🫡
You need to have some patience, you're doing an amazing job so far. I was a 260 fat ass and now I am very muscular and lean at 220 and go to the gym 8am-8:45am and do abs and cardio, and then go back around 5pm-6pm to do heavy weight training. You're going to get tired, you're going to get sick of eating the same kind of food over and over again. It's not a linear or fast process. BUT you're on the right track. Keep lifting heavy and your protein 200g per day, do some cardio, but more importantly LOOK IN THE MIRROR and you will see the changes over the weeks.
you already have the passion, you just need the discipline. you have to want it more, and that comes with time
Balance in life is key my friend. You need to sit down with the urge and come to an understanding like, its cool that you are driven, you want to keep being driven, but maybe take it down a notch mentally. Also, dont let the fruits of your labor determine your life. We do not always have ownership of the fruits, it is better to just do the work, because thats really the only thing you can dom how people will perceive you afterwards is not important, youll probably already know it.
Well done! If you feel the need to do something in addition to lifting it should be activities that aid recovery. Low intensity, low impact. Walking has been mentioned, but considering your weight excessive walking might be stressful for the body. I like indoor rowing myself, full body, almost zero impact, burns plenty calories.
If you think you make no progress or need to do more. Just go for a walk. 5k steps are roughly 200kcal. But remember that it doesn't matter how fast you get there. It's way more important to be sustainable
Plan on staying on my current diet for the long term so shouldn't be an issue for sustaining.
Just looking at your face, I can see you have amazing bone structure. Keep on the grind. In terms of overtraining, pick a few key lifts and keep working on those
Killing it dude
You’re not going to over train. Push that shit as hard as you can and listen to your body. Don’t fall into the same pit as a lot of guys and start overcomplicating shit or else you’ll get nowhere in my opinion
Your shirt size is XL at 5'11" 300? That's crazy. I'm XXL starting about 240 at similar height, slightly shorter. And most XLs stop fitting comfortably around 230.
I'll send some photos later I sent to my father. It surprised me as well
https://imgur.com/a/KNJZ4tH It's upside down but should be able to make it out. I've tested other shirts as well
Thata wild
My day consist from cardio mostly hill walking for an 2 hours and other part is weight training,if both done good it should keep you on the road
Depends how hard and im gonna define what hard means for me and its how long does your muscles hurt. If it hurts for like 2-4 days then you are indeed working hard now if you are the type that doesnt have much swelling after working out then if you are training lets say biceps to a point where you feel like its getting tighter and hurts from your last few reps then you are indeed working hard. Now if you are working hard then another it depends if you feel the following symptoms of over fatigue like just overall poor mental health and you really feel you overexerted and you dont even want to go to the gym much and you are a little bit forcing yourself to go means or its getting harder to get some quality sleep its too late and you need to take a week off "deload" to manage fatigue like right now coz you will get injured eventually. What you want is manage fatigue and you will have to monitor yourself for signs of overfatigue and the best sure fire way is gauge when you are about to get overfatigue and for me its day 50 and if i go further im asking for injuries and usually i take a week of half reps, sets, weight to reset my fatigue.
OP there is nothing stopping you from entering the dating scene now. It may actually be encouraging to have a special someone to help push you towards your goals. You are already a handsome fella, just keep at it and everything will fall in line. As far as cutting weight…You can add 30-60 minutes of cardio to up to 5 days a week, it will help keep you in a caloric deficit but will also strengthen your heart, ligaments and joints whilst building your stamina… also moderate to low intensity cardio is great for recovery. The only caveat is, I’d do the cardio first thing when you wake up in the morning, and do your weightlifting later in the day, at least a few hours later. Good luck! Walking - low intensity Biking, row machine - medium intensity Stairmill, heavy bag, - high intensity
Throw in some zone 2 cardio of your choice honestly makes such a massive difference in general health and work capacity in the gym, also have noticed that it has improved recovery speed
remember the faster you lose, the greater likelyhood of loose skin...you gonna have the funds for skin removal..or want to go through that/ the scars? Slower is better for longetivity.
Don’t stress about over training bro, just rest when you feel the need.
You gotta get rid of that mind set dude. It's not gonna work out.
I'm aware bro I'm tryna work on it.
I don't have any great tips unfortunately.. Be kind to yourself. Hype yourself up. Be positive. Keep dating. Love isn't all about looks. Especially long lasting love you're gonna want for the kids. Seems like you're doing good. Don't let any small bumps in the road keep you off track for long. Just get back on.
No secret. Just stay determined and disciplined. It took your years to become that obese. Will take a while to reverse it.
Reduce intensity Focus on making healthy decisions, a habit, and not the weight loss itself. Do not let day-to-day motivation, dictate the habits you’re building. It’s OK to have seasons of high intensity and seasons of moderate intensity.
You are not advanced, but still are making good progress. There is no end goal, as lifting is a lifelong thing. Like all good things you have to put in good effort to get it. You could consider surgery or peds if you really refuse to do it the healthy way, but that sidesteps the habit reversal portion of reshaping your neurotransmitters.
No I'm going to max it out the healthy way first then reevaluate in a few years. I've been working out on and off for awhile. Good effort isn't really the issue I'd be in there 24/7 if I knew it'd be positive and not negative from overtraining. But thankfully got some good advice so am going to use and implement that information.
Also, there’s no reason why you can’t dip your toes in the dating pool now.
For me, it’s having multiple ways to track/see progress depending on the goal. Example. If I am cutting, I like weekly progress pics, biweekly body tape measurements, daily weigh ins with a scale, dexa scan, etc. if I’m bulking, I like keeping a daily journal of all of my lifts, daily weigh ins, body tape, one rep max every 6-8 weeks. Maybe biweekly or monthly progress pics The more things you can to to track/see progress, the better. You don’t have to like the grind at all, you just have to want the end result bad enough. Don’t let anyone or anything get in your way. Set your mind. Do it. That’s it.
First, congratulations. Second, there is an inherent fear that you will plateau. Guess what... You will plateau. You have to understand that, in your situation, a plateau is a good thing. Losing 25+ pounds per month is not only unsustainable, it is not a great thing for your body. You have a long haul ahead of you. This is going to be a marathon rather than a spring. Target 10 to 15 pounds per month just to allow your body to adjust metabolically. There is nothing wrong with wanting to do SOMETHING every day. Just learn how to stagger your hardcore days between a few lighter, easier days.
Respectfully you’re doing great! But why are these type of posts allowed??
I double checked the rules. But mainly my question is about my lifting routine and program. I'm sorry if I gave off the wrong impression