As I’ve blogged about quite a bit recently, I’m in the process of losing a substantial amount of weight. The day I measured myself at 251 pounds on the big shipping scale at work was the day I decided to do what I knew I could to bring the weight down.
But I’m slowly realizing that the plan one embraces to change one’s weight really does need to keep changing as the weight comes off.
I often hear about the “low-fat” versus “low-carb” “diet wars” on the various podcasts and health shows I listen to and read. The low-carbers make me laugh with accusations that “low-fatties” just don’t get it. The low-fatters make me laugh with accusations that Robert Atkins was morbidly obese at the time of his death (false).
The more I read and learn about nutrition, however you do it, seems to be that as far as macro-nutrients go, as long as you have sufficient protein in your diet, losing weight for the obese or overweight seems to always improve their health. For the sake of argument, I’ll assume the U.S. Department of Agriculture new-style food guide pyramid (with colored columns, rather than stacks of food with grains at the bottom) recommendation of at least 30-40 grams of protein per day for a person on a 2,000 calorie per day eating plan is sufficient.
Of course, micro-nutrients matter, too. That’s why sites like fitday.com and dailyplate.com are awesome resources for tracking nutrition. They will easily calculate for you where you are as far as overall nutrition, making planning easy. Just track everything that goes into your mouth for a couple of weeks, and the deficiencies are easy to spot.
As my weight continues to safely reduce at the rate of around 2 pounds per week, I’m realizing that there are adjustments I’ll need to make. When I started my eating plan, I could pretty much eat all the fat and protein I wanted, and still continue to lose weight as long as I kept my carbohydrates quite low.
I found, however, that there were some deficiencies in eating this way. Notably, fiber, potassium, Vitamin D, and calcium all suffer on all but the most rigidly-structured very-low-carbohydrate diet. The best sources of potassium in the human diet also tend to be sources with a great deal of carbohydrate, too. Given that the FDA does not allow any pill-form supplement to contain more than 99mg of potassium, you really have to find whole-food resources to meet this need over the long-term. Many beans, poultry, some meats, spinach, and some other sources contain a good deal of potassium.
Leg cramps were cramping my style in my high-intensity interval training. I started eating more potassium-rich foods, and the cramps went away. I see a correlation, at least.
But as I approach my weight goal, I’m realizing that in addition to keeping my carbohydrates at a reasonably low level (around 50-60g per day right now), I’ll have to start cutting fats a bit, too. In the interest of building more lean muscle, I can’t cut protein, and even for a guy my size, a 3200+ calorie-per-day diet won’t reduce much!
As I sat down to look at food choices to reduce fat grams to keep my weight loss running, I realized something important.
They’re right.
The low-fat people.
And the low-carb people.
A low-fat or low-carb diet will take me where I want to go, at least initially. But as I transition into a normal life at my new weight, I have to take into account my entire nutritional picture. If I want to reach the recommended fiber level at which I’m at the lowest risk for colon cancer, I will need to introduce more whole-grains, which are virtually absent from my diet except for generous amounts of flax meal at this point. If I want to keep my fats down to a point at which I don’t gain weight while eating more carbohydrates, I have to eat more fish, poultry, and lean cuts of meat to avoid the higher fat grams. If I want to reach good potassium levels, some few starchy vegetables are required to meet my body’s 4000+mg per day requirement.
For those of us fighting overweight, in fact, all diets start to look at lot the same once you close in on a low body fat percentage. No refined carbohydrates, no sugary sodas, no junk food. Plenty of vegetables, a variety of fruits, and whole grains in moderation. About the only difference seems to be the position on meats, fish, and poultry, with the serious body-building crowd embracing ample portions of all, and the cardio crowd encouraging more carbohydrates to support that lifestyle.
If you’re obese or morbidly obese, insulin-resistant, or a Type 2 diabetic, it seems pretty clear low-carb is a safe way to lose weight, transitioning into higher-carb (but still low compared to the US DOA carb guidelines) living as you approach your goal weight.
If you’re not obese, but are overweight and have a number of pounds to lose, you are spoiled for choice in the diet arena. Do you want to low-carb? Go for it. Want to reduce fat? Have a good time. Want to simply reduce calorie to meet your target? Just keep your proteins and essential fats up while you’re reducing, and remember to keep overall calorie consumption at maintenance level without it creeping back up to overweight-level over time.
If you’re already at a healthy body weight, but want to cut enough to show those abs? Figure out a fitness plan with your trainer that will get rid of the few percent body fat to get into the under-fat you for the next show or day at the beach.
There’s always a transition into healthy body weight that ends up in very much the same place across all diet plans. In the long term, the winner is me. And you.
This is a great post. It
This is a great post. It looks like you should be adjusting your eating habits based on your end result, health and long term fitness. I’ve always hated the word maintenance, which is a word used to describe someones life long struggle with keeping weight off. but I think your suggestions can help eliminate the need for “maintenance” mode.
I don’t want to spend the rest of my life constantly focusing on a weight lose program. I want to focus on changing my habits, food and exercise, which should result in a natural healthy lifestyle.
Thanks again. Starting my own journey. It’s a long road.
Thanks, Thom.
Thanks for your comment, Thom. I’ve had a nagging sense lately that Dr. Atkins’ approach toward lifetime maintenance, while healthy and successful for a number of people, is incomplete. He discusses a “Critical Carbohydrate Level for Maintenance” (CCLM) in his “New Diet Revolution” book.
I think that approach works just fine for those who are comfortable being mildly overweight. In fact, some recent statistics show that married men who are slightly overweight live longer than those who are at their “healthy weight”. As an overweight married man, I approve of that statistic 🙂
But anyway, if I eat just based on that macro-nutrient — carbs — I think I’ll reach a reasonable maintenance level. But for those who really want to reach the next level, be it very low body-fat or athleticism, I just don’t think it’s a complete enough picture.
As a for-instance, let’s say I want to put on 10 pounds of muscle this year, and arrive at 8% body-fat. That’s a pretty aggressive goal, requiring an overall weight of 194-195 pounds with 180 pounds of lean body mass. To reach that kind of targeted goal, simply restricting my carbs wouldn’t be enough; I’d reach a point where I’m at virtually zero carbs, yet still not losing weight. I have to pull my fats into the picture to look at overall calories, and also the amount of protein I’m eating to support building muscle, while preventing too much gluconeogenesis. And then if I’m being very aggressive with my reduction goals, I’ll need to be doubly-careful that I’m not shorting myself on important micro-nutrients while I’m cutting fat to show off my abs.
What seems clear to me now is that what’s required to be an athletic and healthy formerly obese person is far beyond the latest macro-nutrient diet of whatever form. For those of us who fight obesity, I suspect that health & fitness must become a passion to obtain long-term success. My diet probably won’t closely resemble that of anybody else I know once I’m done, but it will be mine and right for me.
I’ve never been much of an athlete; I hope thirty-five isn’t too late to start!
—
Matthew P. Barnson
THE HARD TRUTH
For the first time in eight years, I find myself needing to lose weight. In the final editing process of editing the movie, I sat in a chair and worked and ate crap and drank Mountain Dew (my stress drink), working long hours into the night, finishing with some wine and a small-meal size midnight snack.. and I put on 6 pounds in a month.
It sucks, because I LOVE my thanksgiving and December breaks from dieting, and will have to curb those this year.. as it is, I expect that I will likely gain 3 to 4 pounds before January, despite my best intentions. Can’t go without my December Peppermint Mochas.
That being said, I gained weight because I ate too many calories and did too little exercise. I’ve lost 2 lbs in the last week because I cut back on the calories and increased my exercise.
Sometimes I feel like all the research and planning are ways to distract yourself and think you’re doing well.. and I believe that Matt, you can do it because you’re a stubborn SOB.
But for me, its about cutting those calories.. and when I decide to really do it, the pounds will come off.
My trick?
Decrease my calories to 1200 a day. Morning is a bowl of Raisin bran or a Fiber One bar with a cup of coffee and a glass of V8 FUSION light.
Lunch is a Campbell’s Soup to Go (Tomato gives me another veggie, too.. which is fun – yes I know its technically a fruit), with either a tall glass of skim milk or another v8 FUSION light and an Egg-White omelette (no cheese).
Dinner is a 300 calorie Weight Watchers or Healthy Choice or Lean Cuisine dinner and a salad, with a diet soda or another v8 Fusion light.
Finish with 2 Hershey Kisses or Lorna Doone cookies and a small glass of wine or cup of coffee, and boom.. 1200-1300 calories with 3 meals and a dessert.
It gets mundane, and I do get hungry.. but thats the price I pay – I pigged out, now here’s the other side.
My .02
NVZ: NINJAS VS ZOMBIES – THE MOVIE – http://www.nvzmovie.com THE OFFICIAL JUSTIN TIMPANE WEBSITE – http://www.timpane.com
A little different…
My goal is a little different. I’m sick of never being a muscular person. To that end, I need at least 1g of protein per pound of lean body mass to fuel an anabolic diet designed to make me into The Terminator.
OK, not actually, I’ll never — nor do I want to — look like Arnold used to.
But to look awesome with my shirt off? Yeah. I wanna be that guy. The guy that makes most every other guy at the pool look down at his flabby gut and go “I guess some people are naturally lean & muscular”. The one that looks good enough to match the beautiful wife on his arm. The one who has no problem picking his kids up and swinging them around.
I wanna be the guy that can play soccer with his kids for hours, and the kids run out of energy before he does. I wanna be the guy who races his kid to the top of the rock wall on family night and sometimes wins rather than falling off, gasping for breath. I wanna be the guy that can take a long hike and be encouraging others to keep up, rather than the wheezing fellow in the back. I wanna be the guy that can crank out a few dozen chin-ups and say “what’s next?”
I wanna be the guy who looks as smart as he is. I wanna be the guy that doesn’t get passed up for promotions on account of his inability to control his weight. I wanna be the guy who isn’t scared for his back when lifting heavy objects. I wanna be the guy who is coordinated, strong, and swift, rather than nerdy, disjointed, and quack-quack-waddle-waddling along.
In short, I wanna be THAT guy. Yeah, me, the ripped, fit fellow in the tank top that everybody hates until they meet me and realize what a nice guy I am under the muscle.
I’m sick of being the flabby, crappy-balance, always-sick computer geek with extremely pale skin and no muscle tone.
—
Matthew P. Barnson
Another Honest Observation
Matt, tremendous reading your goals. You know, many people aren’t able to articulate their goals. It’s important to be able to write what you want and know it. Goals are like a beacon, always blinking in the back of your mind, able to signal a ground point for original purpose.
It’s also a way to take some impartial observation and question whether your current diet and exercise routine combo is the best way to reach your goal? If I’m reading your goals as taut, strong and full of cardiovascular endurance, then lifting weights as the single form of ‘workout’ may not get you there, regardless of the diet.
Have you thought about: road cycling, martial arts, yoga, boot camp, swimming, mountain cycling, basketball, soccer leagues, or gym machines?
Cardio
I do 5 minutes of cardio as part of my warm-up every night. Three nights a week, I am transitioning into 15-20 minutes of high-intensity interval training, mostly on a stationary bike. I can only handle about 10 minutes right now; I’m still a fat-ass. I can do 30-45 minutes of moderate intensity, but high-intensity intervals really tucker me out. If I’m not gasping for breath with a heart rate above 150, I’m not working hard enough 🙂 I will transition from 3 nights a week to 5 nights a week by the time I get closer to my goal weight. I want to build there and start mixing up long moderate-endurance runs in addition to the HIIT over the course of the next few months, and make sure it’s not affecting my ability to lift (particularly on legs night).
I’m hoping to do a century on a bike next summer. I have to find the right bike and get the dates from my friend Phil — a hard-core biker — before going.
I hate running because it really makes my right knee throb. I don’t know if there’s some injury there I’m not aware of, but my general rule is “if it causes pain that isn’t muscle fatigue, don’t do it!”. The elliptical isn’t so bad, and I often use it for warm-up.
So I think cardio is covered, at least through 20 minutes. If I really want to do that century, eventually I’ll need to start doing some really long sessions to prepare. Six or seven hours in the saddle is gonna take some work.
I’m totally open to new forms of exercise, but I want to make sure my core lifting routine four nights a week remains constant. It’s hard building that habit, and I love the visible results. I also tend to avoid basketball due to the number of sprained ankles I’ve experienced. Maybe I’ll take it up again, but with two ankle braces.
So what’s your routine these days, Sammy?
—
Matthew P. Barnson
And yet…
Latte here I come.. sigh.
NVZ: NINJAS VS ZOMBIES – THE MOVIE – http://www.nvzmovie.com THE OFFICIAL JUSTIN TIMPANE WEBSITE – http://www.timpane.com
Cardio
Remember, anything that gets your heart-rate up is cardio…even if it’s lifting. Cardio doesn’t necessarily mean running or involve the legs, although that’s the easiest and most natural way to do it. If you bench press quick enough to get your heart rate up, that’s perfectly fine cardio.
My $.02 Weed
True, but endurance…
True, it’s cardio, but your muscle fibers will tend to be either oriented toward longer-distance endurance types of activities or shorter, burst-type sports. Good to develop both, but the burst-fibers are far easier to develop with lifting.
—
Matthew P. Barnson
My routine
Matt, I don’t really have a ‘routine’. I have more of a philosophy. My philosophy is to train as though I’m still playing hockey. I tell myself that I’m training to play in a competitive sport against other athletes who are faster and stronger. This way, my intensity and motivation push myself, regardless of whether I’m lifting weights, hiking stairmaster, cycling outdoors, stretching, etc., at an intensity such that I can’t move when it’s over.
Also keep in mind that I haven’t played hockey since March 2000 when (this is true) I last laced ’em up in Weed’s hometown at his high school tennis courts for a neighborhood pickup game.
BTW, Matt, if you want to do a century, please let me know, and I’ll be there. It would be great to plan for that. This summer I did 80 miles in Southern Utah, riding from Bryce to Zion. It was spectacular.
Century
That would be so awesome, Sam. I asked my wife for a road bike for Christmas last night 🙂 I have two buddies named Phil who ride long-distance for pleasure. I’m hitting them up for info on their next race so we can plan the date long in advance.
My goal would be “finish”, not try to win 🙂
—
Matthew P. Barnson
I’m There
Yeah, I’m all about finishing, because 100 miles is a long ride. Figuring something out for next spring/summer would be a very cool deal.
Calendars
Checked the calendars of local bike clubs for upcoming rides; like most clubs, they don’t plan more than about 3 months ahead 🙂 Will check in with a new blog posting closer to spring.
—
Matthew P. Barnson
There Are Two Paths
Matt, I think there are two paths.
1. Register as part of a century tour operated by a dedicated group. This operator usually provides all roadside assistance, snacks, water stops, maps, etc. The ones gaining a lot of traction these days are cause-based rides. There are also good ones in funky locations that attract riders for the scenic aspect.
2. Figure out a route and trip all by ourselves.
The first one sure is easier.
Down 23 lbs
Thanks for calling me a stubborn SOB. I look at myself that way, too.
I’m down 23 pounds since September 1. I’ve put on fourteen pounds of muscle in that same time.
I think I’m doing well 🙂
—
Matthew P. Barnson
Equation
Matt+ Thing Matt puts his mind to = Unstoppable.
NVZ: NINJAS VS ZOMBIES – THE MOVIE – http://www.nvzmovie.com THE OFFICIAL JUSTIN TIMPANE WEBSITE – http://www.timpane.com
Big up yaself, Princeton!
Much love for your blog, sir! 😀