5' 5", 36 years old. Squat 335, Deadlift 335, Bench 195, Press 120.

Just including numbers to indicate what a 163lb obese person lifts after 5 years of somewhat consistent training.


I lived in Cambodia when I lost weight the first time. Different food choices were available, and I was a house player in a poker room that offered free relatively healthy food. I ordered the same portions every day and I think that was a big help to being able to diet consistently for a long period of time.

Now I live with my mom in the U.S. in a household that is a veritable minefield for a dieter. Just huge amounts of delicious garbage that I have to ostensibly pass on at any given time.

Yeah, I’m in a house with 3 kids and a Mediterranean wife who likes feeding them good things. Also a wine cellar to help me make bad decisions

I’m aware that we can all be fatter than we think but Idk but surely you’re being harsh on yourself with terms like ‘obese’? What do your DEXAs look like?

With +125lb to squat/dl and +50lb to bench, I probably look a decent bit better than I did back then at 164, but that picture is in the ballpark of what I look like right now. That's an obese person, or at least on the borderline between overweight and obese.


What % would you give for the 164 pic? I think its 30ish.

idk, I don’t have enough experience of different body types to have any real sense of it, but my finger in the air would be 28 in the heaviest shot down to 23 in the lighter one?

But as I say, total guess.

Ok. Then you have to fill up to the point where you are nearly sick with vegetables, or some similar strategy.

Or go on Amazon and get some extra-strength self-control.

I am very much in a worse situation as far as temptations go. Great excuse, but there is no excuse for you to not mitigate it.

Agree with Brian, obviously, but Renton's issue is more with execution than knowledge (and he obviously knows that).

Also, feel wrath, Renton uses the word "obese" quasi-medically and not necessarily as a pejorative; whether or not he's technically over the BMI threshold to be classified as medically obese (>30, so I think not quite based on his current estimate), I think his point is more that he's clearly medically overweight and carrying too much bodyfat, and he needs to get in gear (and he's entirely correct in that assessment).

There are, maybe, 6 people who don't have sufficient knowledge. Even flat-earthers know that cheesecake, cheeseburgers and fried chicken aren't the best when trying to cut.

I don't think I'm making too much of a leap when I say that Renton seems to forget that self-control is limited and unreliable AND that is the most important knowledge to have when devising a plan. And that there is absolutely nothing any of us can do about that fact of human existence.

The trick is to, during the rare moments where self-control is in abundance, set things up to ensure that you don't need it. His living situation (and mine) are not ideal, but it is his job to figure out how to mitigate it. And, just in case I wasn't clear, trying to be more motivated simply won't cut it often enough. Wishing he was motivated enough 24x7 to not eat easily available yummy fattening foods in large quantities is nothing more than a nice dream; more likely to get bitten by a radioactive spider and be able to climb walls. It is literally impossible to dig that deep on a consistent basis unless you are quite nutty.

Save the grinding/grit/motivation for training sessions. Only got to have self-control for a few hours a week, which is a stretch, but at least attainable.

Brian,

That's a lot of words, but it sounds like you agree with me (and Renton) that diet execution is primarily related to planning, so I'm heartened that you've at least absorbed that much while shitposting in the LC thread.

Monday Jan 4
Base Phase W1D2

Comp Bench: 45x8, 95x8, 125x8, 135x8, 140x8 @7, 140x8 @8

HBBS: 95x10, 135x10, 155x10, 175x10

BTN Press: 45x15, 45x12 x2 sets

Hammer Strength Plate-loaded Row: 25s x15, 35s x15 x2 sets

T = 0:57, RPE 6

***

Not bad. Bench I tried to leave plenty in the tank for the rest of the cycle but the last set still managed to be harder than I wanted. Live and learn I guess. I paced myself better for the squat. With high bar I had some shoulder pain when I took a moderate thumbs-around grip, but no pain with a closer grip which was kind of funny. With low bar I do a wider thumbless grip so I think getting used to this will improve my shoulder mobility a lot.

Pretty ideal day. I wouldn't mind 50 or so less calories but the macros are on point. I ate pretty much the same thing yesterday.

I did however, forget to weigh in this morning, so that log will have to start tomorrow. I think it's kind of ridiculous to log multiple posts per day but this is obviously something that I am having trouble committing to, so that's what I'll do for the forseeable.

Some new things I learned today:

- Waking up at 4:30 am is a hell of a lot easier if I'm hungry and anticipating preparing breakfast. Previously I was having a tough time because I'd normally just have a protein bar or train fasted and then grab breakfast post workout on the way to work. In that case getting up to go straight to the shower and head to the gym was an exercise in pure willpower. There's something really nice about slowing down and sitting at my desk to eat and read the news while I wake up. Might have to wake up at 4:15 to account for the added time it takes, especially once training volume ramps up.

- Special K protein cereal mixed with nonfat greek yogurt is pretty much perfect breakfast macros and actually filled me up. My nature will be to run it into the dirt like everything else, but I'm going to make a conscious effort to vary what I eat for breakfast since I'm eating the same thing every day of the week for lunch and dinner.

What tracking app is that?

MyFitnessPal. I finally broke down and stopped using my makeshift excel system from 2016. Loco will rejoice.

I got stuck out in the field without my prepped lunch, so I had this:



Estimating calories was tough. It's just carnitas and 3 small tortillas. Chipotle says its only 410 calories, but I went with a higher one just to be on the safe side.

First weigh-in: 159.8. I guess I didn't gain as much weight over the holidays as I thought. Still need to drop 20.

That's not 400 calories, but not 700 either.

Chipotle now has carne asada and super greens (kale, spinach, romaine). The carne asada is about 10 times better than the regular steak but obviously, it's more fatty.

It's not chipotle. It's a momnpop mex joint. I just mentioned chipotle bc it was one of the mfp calorie options.

Wednesday Jan 6
Base Phase W1D3

Deadlift: 135x8, 225x8, 235x8, 245x8 @7

Press: 45x10, 65x10, 70x10, 75x10 x2 sets, LS @8.5

OHS: 0x15, 20x15 x2 sets

Band Facepull: orange mini x15 x3 sets

Strapped Hang: 30sec x4 sets

T = 1:05, RPE 7

***

Fine I guess. Cardio is the limiting factor for DL 8s and I was finding I was needing at least 3 min rest between sets to keep up. For context, I haven't rested more than 2 minutes for a set in a really long time.

I’m also trying to keep rest between sets at 90 secs. I don’t squat heavy which makes it fairly doable - surprised you can get your heavy squat sets in @ 2 mins!

All of my recent rep work has been 3+ reps in the tank on every set. Even the squat 275x4x5 day I had that made me sore as ****, I probably had it for 7-8 reps.

I cut the rest down over the years because in the early days I was resting 4-6 minutes between sets and wasting a lot of time in the gym.

I agree. I remember the CrossFit days of 5x5 squat being the entire session and it taking me an hour

But still, if I was squatting at close to my max like you are, I don’t think I’d be able to go through the sets so quickly. Too sapping

159.0

Thursday Jan 8
Base Phase W1D4

Pullup Progression: Lat Pulldown 25x8, 40x8, 55x8, 70x8, 85x8, 85(+) x8, Pullups x2 x3 sets, Lat Pulldown 85(+) x13

Front Squat: 45x10, 95x10, 115x10, 135x10 @easy

Dips: x8 x3 sets

Prone Leg Curl: 50x15 x3 sets

Straight-arm Lat Pulldown: 25(+) x15 x3 sets

T = 1:00, RPE 6

(+) means added intermediate magnet weight to the cable stack

***

I took this one intentionally easy cause its the first week and I expect this day to suck going forward. It's the only back to back day and it ends the training week so I don't want the numbers going up too much too quickly. For the front squat in particular I'm trying to do perfect reps and keep the bar speed relatively high.

I've always sucked at pullups with a prone grip. Even the two reppers weren't great reps. I've got a long way to go here but with the weight loss and upper back accessory work I think I can get to 8 clean reps in a couple of months hopefully.

Forgot to log this into MFP yesterday. The omelette was a decent call for breakfast. I'd tweak the cheese and put a little less beef in it probably.

159lb

Cals and macros have been looking pretty good!

+1, keep it up!

Yeah that looks good, even saw a little green in there (broccoli). Just a little. Maybe we get a berry in there one day.

There is no permanent success without veggies and fruit. There just isn't.